How can you mend a broken heart?
by Mr. Lee
Summary: A heinous act occurs before Sasuke leaves Konoha. And nothing will ever be the same again. A Dark NaruSaku that's not for the faint of heart. Rated M for some rape elements, serious angst and a little fluff. LOOK AT ALL AUTHOR'S NOTES BEFORE READING!
1. Ch 1 A Fallen Blossom

How can you mend a broken heart? By Mr. Lee

This fanfiction will be a Dark NaruSaku story and is **not** for the faint of heart.

Rated M for some rape elements, serious angst, and a little fluff

Disclaimer: This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only. The author of this fanfiction does not own Naruto or its characters. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Any other similarities in this story are purely coincidental.

Author's note: It's been a long time my great fans, authors, readers and friends. Mr. Lee is back, with a new story that, let's just say is an **EXTREME** change of pace compared to my other stories I'm known for. Before I begin, I want to apologize to my fans of my flagship story The Clan of Currents for taking so long to bring out chapter nine :(. I am working on it as I promised I would in my special author's note, and I will try my damn hardest to bring it out by the end of November deadline. However, as I rested this Veterans Day weekend and got back to reading some good fics, my brain was literally SET ON FIRE as far as inspiration goes, and I'm now working on two new stories that I will consider 'experimental' for now, meaning whether you want them to continue will be entirely up to you, the fans. And both of them will be considered Dark Naruto stories in the sense.

The first one here is called How can you mend a broken heart? This story came to me when I woke up on Tuesday, after the three day weekend while I was listening to the song that bears its name by the legendary soul artist Al Green (Which was originally sung by the Bee Gees.). When it did, I ran to my desk and wrote it down on a piece of paper in haste while I ate breakfast, but I'm sure you guys don't care about that LOL XD. This Dark Naruto story will be a NaruSaku story, but it can change depending on your reaction to this (I'm prepared for the worse on this one.). This story is an AU one and it will begin with a classic scene that will take an unfortunate and **heinous** turn for the worse. And what happens afterwards will change Naruto and Sakura forever. There will be some OOCness, so be prepared. Now to those reviewers who thought that my Naruto Flower Tales: Ino was controversial, this story will make what happened in that story seem, in a word, tame. Now I'm only going to say this **once**, and **I deeply and sincerely apologize if I offend, upset, or hurt anyone in regards to the contents that this story will contain, especially to the female fans that I have** :(. This is a **serious story** that I ask of you, my friends, to read in its **entirety** and with an open mind if you decide to review. Furthermore, I want to make it **abundantly clear to all of you **that I'm a gentleman and a man of honor towards **ALL WOMEN**! I do not and shall NEVER, and I emphasize this strongly, **NEVER**, **condone any kind of abuse towards women in any way, shape or form, whether it be rape or otherwise!!** With that said, let us begin as we head towards the darker side of Naruto, and of life itself. Remember, this is an '**experimental**' story for me, and it's up to you whether or not it will be continued. Enjoy :)!

_How can you mend a broken heart?_

_How can you stop the rain from falling down?_

_How can you stop the sun from shining?_

_What makes the world go round?- Verse from How can you mend a broken heart? By Al Green (Originally sung by the Bee Gees.)_

_**WARNING!!- The following story contains extremely emotional and disturbing content which may not be acceptable to certain readers and which DO NOT reflect the author's views or beliefs. Reader discretion is advised!! You have been warned!!**_

**Chapter 1- A Fallen Blossom**

One day. Sometimes it takes just one day for a person's life to change forever. And that change can easily affect others, like ripples in the water. For the ones known as Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura, that day would be when their teammate Uchiha Sasuke would challenge his fellow teammate to a fight. A fight that would forever destroy the team, and them, forevermore.

While Naruto was fighting to defeat him in a fair fight to prove his strength, Sasuke was fighting to kill him, fueled by his jealousy and envy of how far the spiky blond has come since the beginning. As Sakura watched in horror, she couldn't believe how he mercilessly punched and kicked his teammate, his face contorted in anger while his Sharingan blazed. It came to the point where he had to use his **Chidori** (One Thousand Birds) to prove that he was the strongest, something that he was willing to kill for. Sakura ran to them, asking them to stop, though whether she was saying it more to Naruto than Sasuke is debatable. It was finally stopped by their sensei, Hatake Kakashi. And after seeing the results of the battle via the damage from the tanks that they hit, it only made the raven haired genin angrier, more jealous and more envious.

Naruto stood there as he heard Kakashi talking to the toad sannin Jiraiya. He heard the copy ninja criticize him to Jiraiya about using the **Rasengan** (Spiraling Sphere). Kakashi also mentioned that Naruto wanted to prove himself to Sasuke. Although that part was true, the blond ninja also wanted to prove himself to the teacher who at first called him a loser and an idiot. And after hearing that, it truly hurt him just as much as the battle he just had with his 'best friend'. After they finished talking, Naruto was set to leave the hospital roof to think about what happened, but not before giving Sakura a warning. A warning for her safety, and for both their state of mind.

"Sakura-chan, don't interfere…" He told her in a serious tone which made her gasp. After some time passed, Sakura came to Naruto to talk to him about the curse mark, saying that it was a 'date'. As much as people tell him that he was an idiot, he knew better than that. Nobody would go out on a date with everything that happened today. But he truly loved and cared about Sakura, and as always, he gave her his time. After hearing about the curse mark and Orochimaru, which she blamed for Sasuke's change, Naruto did what came naturally to him when it came to the pink haired kunoichi. He cheered her up.

"Don't worry about it! Sasuke wouldn't accept that bastard's invitation. He doesn't need to do that since he's really strong." The spiky blond told her as he took his bowl and finished off the remains of his ramen. "I guarantee it!" He added as he placed his arm on his heart. Sakura couldn't help but look at him in disbelief.

'He just fought Sasuke-kun earlier today. And despite what happened and what Sasuke-kun did, he still believes in him. You're truly something else Naruto.' Sakura thought as his grin brought out the smile that was hidden beneath her worry. She nodded in agreement and talked for a little bit longer with the teammate she once said she hated. Some time later, they stepped out of Ichiraku and were ready to go home. Naruto offered to walk her home for her safety, but Sakura insisted that she go alone. Especially when she looked at the moon in horror, as if her 'woman's intuition' sensed that something was wrong. Naruto respected her feelings and didn't persist, and went back inside the ramen bar before waving goodbye to her.

As she started to walk, that nerving feeling she got became stronger and she started to head to the academy, where the back entrance of Konoha was. She didn't know why she went their, but something drew her to that spot. While continuing her trek, the words that Naruto told her began to echo into her mind like an alarm.

"**Sakura-chan, don't interfere…"**

"**Don't worry about it! Sasuke wouldn't accept that bastard's invitation."**

The words her teammate said kept playing in her head like a mantra, especially about her not interfering, as if they were warning her of something that was about to happen. But she just shook the words out of her head as if they didn't exist, and steeled her resolve as she got closer to her destination. After all, ignoring what Naruto did and said was strangely natural for her, even though she unconsciously did it.

That's the way Sakura was when it came to Sasuke. She was a selfish and shallow person when it came to him. So much that she was willing to end her friendship with her first friend, who she thought, once upon a time, would be her only friend, just to be with him. She was even willing to completely ignore the feelings of the one person who would give his life for her in a heartbeat. The same one that she asked out on a 'date'. To her, despite the fact that Sasuke constantly ignored her and put her down almost as much as she did to Naruto, he could do no wrong, no matter what he did. To her, Sasuke was her everything, and she was, in a manner of speaking, the queen of the fan girls he had, 'loving' him more than anyone else. But that blind loyalty Sakura had for her teammate would cost her more than she would ever realize. For tonight, she would learn that all that glitters isn't necessarily gold. And she would learn it in the most horrible and heinous way imaginable.

As Sakura came to a stop, she saw that her intuition proved to be correct as she saw Sasuke walking towards her. As she saw the backpack that was on his shoulders, her heart dropped. The pink haired kunoichi knew in an instant that he was leaving, that he was accepting the snake sannin's offer and it made the tears in her eyes burn.

"What are you doing wandering around here at night?" Sasuke asked without the least bit of concern in his voice.

"In order to get out of the village, you have to take this road." Sakura replied in a plain voice.

"Go home and sleep." He said with a hard edge in his voice as he walked past her, not even bothering to look in her eyes. The tears that she held in her eyes began to fall.

"Why? Why won't you tell me anything? Why do you always stay silent? Why won't you say anything to me?" The kunoichi questioned as she turned her head to look at him.

"**WHY DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU ANYTHING?!**" The young ninja answered her in a voice that was mixed with anger, annoyance and agitation. "It's none of your business. Stop concerning yourself about what I do." He spat with his voice full of spite. She lowered her head and smiled bitterly.

"You've…always hated me huh Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked with pain etched in her voice, like she knew he wasn't going to answer. As she expected, he didn't turn his head and remained silent. "Do you remember the day we became genin and our three member team was first chosen? That day, you and I were here alone, and you got mad at me remember?" She inquired from the raven haired Uchiha as she remembered him scolding her for making fun of Naruto because he had no parents.

"I don't remember…" Sasuke replied like he didn't care, causing Sakura to gasp and lower her head, laughing bitterly as if she wasn't surprised by his answer.

"It makes sense. That's something that happened a while back. But that's the day when everything started. You and me, Naruto and Kakashi-sensei. The four of us completed a number of missions together. They were tough and a lot of work. But above all, it was fun!" The beautiful kunoichi said finishing with a smile as she reminisced of their time together. She paused for a moment and lowered her head once more as she continued. "I know about your clan and what happened to them. But with your revenge alone, you won't make anyone happy. No one. Neither you…nor me." She said solemnly.

"I know that. I'm different from you guys because I walk a different path. I tried to think that it was my path to do the things we've done up until now. But my heart decided on revenge in the end. That's my purpose in life." Sasuke said with a hard voice.

"Are you going to choose to be alone again?! On that day, you taught me that solitude is painful! I understand that so well now. I have a family, and friends, but if you're gone Sasuke-kun…to me it'll be the same as being alone!" The pink haired girl sobbed as her tears started to flow once again.

"From here on…A new path will open for all of us." The raven haired Uchiha said in a quiet tone as if he didn't hear her.

"I…I love you so much Sasuke-kun!" Sakura screamed without hesitation. He didn't move or make any response. "If you stay with me by my side, I'm sure you won't regret it! I will make every day more enjoyable. We'll definitely be happy. I'll do anything for you! So please…please stay here!" The beautiful kunoichi shouted in a desperate tone. Sasuke still didn't respond or make any notion to tell her he heard her. But it didn't stop her from pouring her heart out to him. "I will even help you with your revenge! I'll do something! So please stay here with me! If you can't stay, then please take me with you…" She cried as she started to sob. It was at that point that he turned his head and looked at her.

"You haven't changed. You **REALLY **are **ANNOYING**!" Sasuke told her with a scowl on his face and an indistinguishable smile. As Sakura gasped at his heartless comment, he turned his head back and started to walk away from her.

"Don't leave!! If you do, I'll scream!" The pink haired girl yelled. As soon as the words came out of her mouth, he appeared behind her. When she sensed him, her eyes widened with horror as she felt killing intent coming from the young man she just told she loved.

"You're just like Naruto. A pathetic dobe (dead last), a baka (idiot) and a loser. **And** **you've gotten in my way for** **the last time**." He said suddenly with malice dripping from his voice.

"W-what?" Sakura said in utter shock. The Uchiha didn't say anything, and with great speed, he activated his Sharingan and roughly grabbed her hand, tying her wrist with thin wire cords. Using his other hand before she could respond, he grabbed her other arm and put it in a chicken wing lock, causing her to gasp in pain while he tied her other wrist with the wire. In less than a minute, both her arms were bound by unbreakable, razor sharp wire.

"Sasuke-kun, what are you…?" Before she could ask her question, he swept her feet with a low kick, knocking her down onto the ground face first. He leaned his knee on the center of her back and wrapped her legs with wire as well as he removed her sandals. Once he took care of her legs, he placed a kunai next to her throat. She couldn't believe what he was doing and was genuinely scared of what he would do next. "S-sasuke-kun…" she whimpered in a mouse like voice.

"SHUT UP!! I'm sick of you and Naruto getting in my way! I told you a long time ago, I'm an avenger! What can a **useless little girl** like you do for me?! Well, since you want to interfere in my business and can't take a hint, I think I'll accomplish another of my 'goals' before I go." Sasuke said next to her ear as he leaned the sharp weapon to her throat, slightly drawing blood.

"A-another one o-of your g-goals?" The kunoichi stammered in fright. The Uchiha just gave her a sly and wicked smile as he stood up and grabbed the back flap of her long red dress.

"Have you forgotten Sakura? My other goal is to **restore my clan**. And since you said you love me and would do **anything** for me, I figured I would give it a try, just in case I do die from avenging my clan." He replied with a low voice. With one swipe, he cut the dress with the kunai, leaving only the top half of her outfit and her exposed bicycle shorts showing in the back.

"SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura screamed when she realized what he was about to do. That is, until he returned the kunai back to her throat.

"You scream like that again, and I **will** kill you!" He growled in a deadly serious tone as he leaned the kunai even deeper to her throat, drawing blood. Using his other hand, he slowly removed her bicycle shorts and cut them until they were in pieces. Sakura kept on protesting for him to stop while she sobbed her eyes out, but it fell on deaf ears as he cut the rest of her dress with the razor sharp weapon until it was in pieces and she was bare to the world. She tried to scream again, but he slapped her with the back of his hand and punched her in the back of the head, silencing her. Making sure she wouldn't try to scream again, he pulled out an explosive tag from his pack and placed it on her forehead.

"Now you be a good girl…or else." He said in her ear as he traced the point of the ninja weapon on the spine of her back. Sakura tried to break free from her bonds as Sasuke removed his white short pants and underwear, but the razor sharp wires were cutting her hands, wrists and ankles, causing her great pain and making her tied limbs bleed. She was so frightened by what was about to happen, that even using the **Nawanuke no Jutsu **(Rope Escape Technique) didn't cross her panicked mind. He dragged her to the bench and tossed her on it like a piece of meat.

"Sasuke-kun…Please stop this. I'm begging you…" Sakura sobbed in pain as she twisted her head to look at him as he gathered his clothes from the road and tossed them next to the bench. She wondered if it was the curse seal that was making him do this, like she thought when he broke Zaku's arms in the Forest of Death. But the seal wasn't activated. As much as she hated to admit it to herself, he was doing this of his own free will. He grabbed her fiercely by the hair and lifted her so that she was leaning on his chest.

"Why do you want me to stop Sakura? This is what you wanted, isn't it? To love me, be with me and do anything for me? Isn't that why you grew your hair long, ended your friendship with that annoying Ino, and treated Naruto as if he was beneath you? To you, he didn't even exist, even after I told you he risked everything to save you from Gaara." Sasuke said to her with a scowl as he bit her ear hard.

"But, this isn't you Sasuke-kun!!" The kunoichi replied.

"For the smartest girl in our graduating class, you're such a stupid and selfish bitch. You cried your heart out for me, defended me from Naruto by hitting him every chance you got, even when he did nothing wrong. And you became a bitter rival to your former best friend just to be with me. And you still don't know who the hell I am. Even Naruto knows me better than you ever did, even though he's never seen this side of me until today, when I wanted to ram my Chidori into his damn chest." The young Uchiha said to her as he slowly licked her neck, causing her to flinch. Normally, she would probably be turned on by what he did. But this was wrong, completely and utterly wrong.

"So you were trying to kill Naruto…!" She said in realization.

"That's right, until Kakashi got in my way. And yet when you were trying to run after us, telling us to stop, you were saying it to Naruto instead of me, weren't you? You're just like an annoying little puppy that pissed on yourself over me like all the girls here, and pissed all over everyone else. And just like the stupid little bitch that you are, I'm going to take you from behind just to show you how worthless you are to me." Sasuke said with pure venom.

"NO! PLEASE D-" Sakura was immediately silenced as Sasuke grabbed her by the throat and rammed himself into her. She bit her lip to stop herself from screaming as he ripped past her hymen and blood trickled down her legs. While still holding onto her throat to keep her steady, squeezing it to keep her silent, he began to thrust himself in her, not even bothering to wait for her to recover, while fondling her body.

Like most of the young women in Konoha who fawned over him, Sakura always dreamed that her first time would be with Sasuke. That he would be a prince who would sweep her off her feet, love her and care for her, despite the lack of confidence she had when it came to her body. That he would choose her over her first friend, who she now called a pig. That after they were together, the annoyances of her hyperactive teammate when he asked her out on a date every day would cease. She wanted her first kiss with him, her first date with him, and her first time with him to be romantic and special, just like in the fairy tales and romance novels she kept on her bookshelves. But now she knew the reality, the truth that was Uchiha Sasuke as he continued to do what he wanted to her, while she continued to struggle to free her hands and legs that were still tied with the wire. She had been chasing him since her early years in the academy. A chase that she now realized, cost her more than she gained in her young life. A dream that was turned into a despicable nightmare that every woman preyed they would never experience in their lifetime.

'Is…is this…my punishment…for what…I've done…to you…Naruto?' She suddenly said in her mind as her now glazed and bloodshot eyes continued to release tears. As every minute of the act passed on, she no longer had the energy to scream or resist him anymore, no matter how much she wanted to. Sasuke's hand on her throat and his hard thrusts saw to that as he applied a little more pressure every time she made a sound, making sure she was conscious to receive his 'gift'. There was no pleasure to be gained from this horrid act. Only deep and everlasting pain that wracked her body, her spirit and her now broken heart.

All she could think about was what Sasuke said to her about her pissing on everyone else except him. Was she really that blind, that she was willing to leave the village and everything she loved to be with him? Did she really know very little about the young man she screamed that she loved so much who was now raping her? Was it her actions and words towards her former best friend, who helped her believe she could become the strong and beautiful flower she was destined to be, and her teammate, who has always showed her nothing but kindness and chivalry despite her treatment of him, that caused this to happen?

She realized just how much of a fool she was. A fool that was slowly falling into the abyss with each thrust and grope of her body. She told Sasuke about how solitude is painful and that if he left, she would be alone. She truly felt that her naïve words, words that she ironically learned when she said those cold words against Naruto that first day they were a team, were coming back to haunt her. At that moment, Haruno Sakura knew what it was truly like to be alone. And she wanted, and needed the friends and family she was about to leave behind for this young man, now more than ever.

'**MOM**...**INO**…**NARUTO!! PLEASE HELP ME!! IT HURTS!! I NEED YOU!! PROTECT ME!! SAVE ME…!!!**' Sakura screamed in her head just as the disgusting act was finally done and his essence went inside her. The feeling wasn't like her mother had told her about when she had the talk with her. It was ghastly and filthy, which was enough to make the disgust she was feeling, knock her unconscious. Her hair was disheveled and sweaty and her body was bruised from his rough caresses, while blood was still coming out of her intimate area. Sasuke pulled out of her with a smile of vile satisfaction plastered on his face as he looked down at the girl. He pulled out of her and wiped off the sweat, blood and essence that were on him. He put his underwear and pants back on and removed his explosive tag from her forehead, putting it back in his backpack. He began to start walking away from her to the entrance of Konoha, taking a moment to look back at her.

'Well Itachi, you said that I didn't have enough hate in me. But it looks like you were wrong about that, as you'll soon find out…' Sasuke thought with satisfaction as he remembered his brother's words the last time they met. "Sakura…thank you." He said in a stone cold voice and a sneer on his face. He lets out a rarely heard laugh, a laugh full of hatred and a touch of insanity as he walks out of the village, leaving a unconscious and broken Haruno Sakura with tears that continued to fall out of her closed eyes and an open mouth with her saliva escaping from it.

_Dawn_

As the sun started to begin its rise on Konoha, Izumo and Kotetsu, who has since become 'errand boys' to the recently appointed Godaime Hokage Tsunade, did their morning rounds while carrying a mountain of books to bring to her office.

"I can't believe we have to carry more of these medical books." Kotetsu sighed.

"I know what you mean. Hokage-sama can be a slave driver when she wants to be." Izumo said in agreement causing them to laugh a minute later. But the laughter instantly disappeared as they saw a nude, pale and still tied up Sakura on the bench. "Kami-sama, what the hell happened here?!" He said in horror as he quickly dropped the books and ran to the girl. Kotetsu dropped his as well and joined his partner. Taking a quick moment to look at her body, they immediately figured out what happened.

"This girl is on Kakashi's team. It looks like she's been raped and beaten. How terrible…" Izumo sadly deduced as he cut the wires carefully with a kunai. As he was doing so, they heard the girl was talking incoherently while she was unconscious.

"Naruto…help me…please stop Sasuke…" Sakura mumbled. When the words were heard by both men, there eyes bulged out of there sockets.

"She's barely breathing. We have to get her to the hospital. Once we do that, we have to inform Hokage-sama immediately!" Kotetsu said as he took off his chunin jacket and covered her after his friend cut the wire. Izumo nodded in agreement and gently picked her up. But just when they were about to jump to the tree tops, the kunoichi finally awakened. The visions of that night came rushing into her mind and without hesitation, she screamed.

"NO! GET AWAY! NARUTO, HELP ME!! DON'T LET SASUKE RAPE ME AGAIN!!" Sakura said erratically as she punched, kicked and struggled against Izumo in a delusional haze.

"Calm down. We're not going to hurt you!" Kotetsu said as he tried to restrain her. But it was useless as she continued to fight them while still calling for Naruto to save her. Realizing that they had no choice, Kotetsu hit a nerve on the back of her neck which knocked her unconscious without hurting her. "Are you alright Izumo?" He asked with concern.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Though I'm going to need an ice pack for my jaw later." Izumo replied as he looked at the bruise on his face from a punch that Sakura landed.

"Izumo, you take the girl to the hospital. I'll head to Hokage tower to make a report. If what she said is true, then we've got a really big problem." Kotetsu said.

"Right. I'll see you later." Izumo said. A minute later, they jumped into the treetops and separated, heading to their locations with great haste.

_Hokage Tower-Tsunade's office-Ten minutes later_

"**SASUKE DID WHAT?!!!" **Tsunade bellowed at the top of her lungs as she stood up and destroyed her desk with a powerful punch, which almost made Kotetsu wet his pants.

"W-Well, it's not one hundred percent certain, but from what Haruno Sakura was saying when she awoke, it seems she was raped and abused by Uchiha Sasuke. The fact that she constantly called Uzumaki Naruto to save her seems to confirm this. Izumo has taken her to the hospital while I came to report what happened." The chunin explained after composing himself.

'Kakashi told me what happened between Sasuke and Naruto at the hospital before he left. But I never thought that a member of the Uchiha clan would…' Tsunade thought with a frown as she rubbed her temples. "Genma! Raido!" She suddenly yelled.

"We're here Hokage-sama!" They both said as they suddenly appeared.

"Genma, head to Uchiha Sasuke's residence and bring him to me, by force if necessary. If he's not there, then search the village top to bottom. I want him found! Raido, inform the ANBU guards to check in with their reports and to send a unit to where the incident happened to find and recover evidence of this crime. Go!" She ordered with a hard face.

"Yes Hokage-sama!" They said as they vanished.

"Kotetsu, thank you for the swift report. Good work. Head back to the entrance and get the medical books you left. Just take your time. I'm heading to the hospital to check on Sakura." The female sannin said.

"Yes Hokage-sama." Kotetsu said with a nod as he left the office. After he left, the Hokage wiped her face from the light tears that she had in her eyes. As a med-nin and as a woman, she has dealt with many victims of rape. And every time she saw one, young or old, it always broke her heart.

"Kami-sama, please don't let her die…" She said out loud in a somber tone as she walked out the office.

_Konoha Hospital_

Several minutes later, Tsunade entered the doors of the hospital and headed to the nurse.

"Nurse, give me a status report on Haruno Sakura." Tsunade commanded.

"Yes Hokage-sama! According to the preliminary report, Haruno Sakura has suffered multiple bruises and abrasions all over her body which includes a minor concussion from a blow to the back of the head. Her anal and vaginal area was what suffered the worst damage, with multiple scarring of the outer and inner core as well as internal bleeding. The rape kit tested positive for semen and is being checked for any remnants of DNA. The med corps is operating on her at this time, trying to repair the damage. Shizune is supervising the operation." The nurse read from the chart in her hand.

"Good work. Tell Shizune to come to my office when the operation and the DNA test are done." The beautiful blonde requested.

"Understood Hokage-sama." The nurse said as she bowed to Tsunade while she turned to leave.

_Tsunade's office- Two and a half hours later-Early morning_

"I see. So Uchiha Sasuke has left Konoha?" Tsunade asked as she listened to Genma's report.

"I'm afraid so. When I checked his room, a number of clothes and all his ninja weaponry were missing." The toothpick using jonin replied.

"The ANBU guards have also found no sight of him. The remaining guard that is investigating the scene of the crime, has transferred the evidence to the lab at the hospital." Raido added. At that moment, a weary Shizune entered the office.

"Tsunade-sama, I have the full report as you requested." Shizune said with a tired look on her face.

"Good work. Genma, Raido, please leave the office. I need to speak to Shizune alone." The Godaime Hokage said. They both nodded in understanding and left the office. Taking a long, deep breath and preparing herself for the worst, she told her assistant to read the report.

"Well to begin, the results from the DNA that we got from the hairs we recovered from Sakura's private parts confirm that…Uchiha Sasuke was the one who raped, beaten and sodomized her." The short haired med-nin said gravelly. Tsunade clenched her hands and visibly grinded her teeth before asking her to continue. "When Izumo brought her in, we immediately operated on her and healed the wounds to her body as well as to her vaginal and anal areas. Fortunately, there appears that there will be no permanent damage or scarring as far as her physical state goes. Unfortunately, it appears that her mental state has suffered the most damage." She said.

"What do you mean?" Tsunade asked.

"Sakura is conscious, but her mind is in an extremely fragile state, to the point that any form of psychological healing will only make her condition worse. She didn't respond to me or her mother when she came to her room after the operation. And whenever a male comes near her, she suddenly becomes violent and starts kicking and screaming. However, she keeps saying one thing since she's regained consciousness." Shizune said.

"And what's that?" The legendary sucker inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"She says 'Naruto, please help me…'." She replied. Tsunade closed her eyes and rubbed her temples again as her mind went back to all the stories Naruto told her when they headed back to Konoha on how badly she treated him, including the time when she healed Sasuke, and how Sakura went to the Uchiha, completely ignoring Naruto.

'The one person that Sakura treated as if he didn't exist, has now become the key to her existence. If the situation wasn't so deadly serious, I'd laugh at the irony of it.' Tsunade thought with a wry expression. "Shizune, gather Genma, Raido and Iwashi and head out to find Sasuke. Before that, call Shikamaru here." She ordered.

"Yes Tsunade-sama. I'm on my way." Shizune said.

"I'm sorry Shizune. I know that you're tired." The female sannin said with a small smile.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. It's Sakura…and Naruto I'm worried about." She said with melancholy etched in her voice.

"You and me both Shizune. You and me both…" Tsunade agreed exasperatedly. Shizune bowed and quickly left the office. Tsunade stood up and went to her bookcase on the left side of the office. She pulled out a bottle of sake that she hid from Shizune and took a long drink from the small bottle, not even bothering to pour it in a cup. 'Screw tea right now.' She thought as she wiped her mouth.

_Thirty minutes later_

After reporting the situation to Shikamaru, she sent him out to gather a team of his choosing that would meet her at the front gate to explain the mission. Not wasting any time, he gathered Neji, Choji, Kiba with Akamaru and Naruto. Shikamaru made sure not to mention what happened to the kunoichi due to the sensitivity of the issue. Once that was settled, they met the Hokage at the gate.

"Alright everyone! As I'm sure you've heard briefly from Shikamaru, I've summoned you all here for a mission. It will be considered an A-rank mission." Tsunade started to explain with a grave look on her face.

"What's wrong Tsunade-baachan (Granny Tsunade)?" Naruto asked with concern as he noticed the look on her face.

'I better be ready for the worse…' Tsunade said as she looked at her ototo (little brother) and took a deep breath. "An incident caused by Uchiha Sasuke has gravelly injured Haruno Sakura. And he has left Konoha." Tsunade told them in a somber tone. A moment later, she cursed herself for saying it in such a fashion.

"WHAT?! What did Sasuke do to Sakura-chan?! Where is she? Is she alright?" Naruto questioned with a worried look on his face, completely ignoring the part about Sasuke leaving Konoha.

"Calm down Naruto! Sakura is fine and is resting at the hospital." She replied while telling him a little white lie. Naruto began to breathe a sigh of relief until Ino appeared at the gate.

"Naruto!" Ino shouted as she ran up to him with tears in her eyes.

"Ino, what happened? Why are you crying?" The spiky blonde asked her. Tsunade sensed what the mind jutsu expert was about to say, but she was too late to say anything as the kunoichi blurted it out.

"You have to help Sakura! She was raped by Sasuke! He completely destroyed her body and mind!" The platinum blonde replied hysterically while removing the suffix from the name of her now ex-crush.

"INO!!" Tsunade yelled at her in a scolding fashion. But it was too little, too late as Naruto's body became deathly cold and tears started to fall from his eyes in utter disbelief at the news.

"Tsunade-baachan, is this true…?" Naruto asked in a dangerously quiet voice as he turned his head to Tsunade while his bangs covered his eyes.

"Naruto…please take it-" She never got a chance to finish as he raised his head to look at her with an angry face.

"**IS THIS TRUE?!!**" He asked her again in a much harsher voice.

"Yes…it's true…" Tsunade finally answered in defeat as she lowered her head.

'I can't believe it…Sakura loved him so much even after he ignored her all this time…I went to bat for him, despite what happened between us yesterday. And…that bastard…he…HE…' Naruto was completely speechless and didn't know what to think. But there was one emotion he was feeling at the moment, and it was rage. Pure, unadulterated rage. It's true that he considered Sasuke one of his precious people, but to him, Sakura was much higher on his list. And what he did to her was unforgivable, even to someone who has forgiven virtually every sin that people have done to him. He clenched his fists tightly and lowered his head as red chakra began to pour out of his body, making his body change. Tsunade's eyes widened in horror as she sensed the spike in Naruto's chakra.

"Naruto-kun, please calm down. Don't lose control!" Tsunade yelled at him as she ran up to him and grabbed his arm. Naruto lifted his head and looked at her. His teeth had become pointed and fang like, while his eyes was red with black slits.

"**Get away from me!!" **Naruto growled in an animal like voice. He twisted his arm to grab the one she held and in a berserker fury, he punched Tsunade into a wall, causing everyone to gasp in astonishment.

'I can't believe he just punched the Hokage into a wall!' Kiba and Choji thought simultaneously.

'This chakra. It's the same thing he used against me in the chunin exams!' Neji said in his mind. At that point, four chakra tails emerged behind him, completely changing him and making him look less than human. It made everyone present quiver in fear, especially Akamaru.

"N-Naruto…?" Ino said in fear.

"**I'M GONNA KILL HIM!!" **The now Kyubified Naruto roared without looking back at her as he ran through the gate on all fours. The three genin and one chunin all stared in disbelief at what they just saw. It took them another minute to get their heads together and check on the condition of the Hokage as they ran to the wall she hit.

"Hokage-sama, are you alright?" Shikamaru asked as he leaned down to pick her up. She raised her hand to stop him as she got up herself.

"Don't worry about me. You have to stop Naruto and bring him back. Follow his chakra trail and try to restrain him with your Shadow techniques until he calms down Shikamaru. But under no circumstances, should you or anyone else engage him in combat! Do you understand?" Tsunade ordered him and the others as blood came down her head.

"Yes Hokage-sama. Let's hurry!" Shikamaru said with urgency. The others nodded and ran out of Konoha to try to catch up to him.

"Here, let me help you Hokage-sama." Ino said as she stood next to her and wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her.

"Thanks Ino." Tsunade said with a small smile as they started to walk slowly back to the Hokage Tower.

"I…I'm sorry Hokage-sama. This is all my fault." The platinum blonde said as she lowered her head.

"It's alright Ino. You didn't know, and you were only thinking about Sakura's safety. Just between us, I probably would have done the same thing." Her fellow blonde said wearily.

"What happened to Naruto? How did he change like that?" Ino asked curiously. Tsunade sighed, sensing that this question would come after what they just saw.

"I'm sorry Ino, I'm afraid I can't tell you. If Naruto chooses, he'll tell you himself." Tsunade replied as she looked ahead.

"I understand." The kunoichi said as she surprisingly dropped the subject. 'Please come back Naruto. Sakura needs you…' She thought as she turned her head for a moment before walking to the hospital with the Godaime Hokage.

_Konoha Forest_

Kyubi Naruto raced through the woods, until he suddenly came to a halt. Using his now enhanced senses, he sniffed the ground like an animal, picking up the scent of his prey and four others.

"**SASUKE!!" **He roared insanely as he continued to move through the trees, destroying everything in his path. Meanwhile, not too far away, Shizune was healing Genma and Raido, who were defeated and badly injured by the Sound Four who was escorting Sasuke.

'These wounds are bad. I have to get these two back to Konoha.' Shizune thought as she continued to pour green chakra into Raido's wounds after she gave Genma emergency treatment.

"Shizune-san, look!" Iwashi shouts in horror as he points up. The med-nin stops her healing for a moment and looks up to see someone with tails jumping past them in the treetops. He looks in her eyes for a brief moment before looking ahead without slowing down or stopping.

'It can't be! Is that Naruto-kun?!' Shizune said in her mind as she felt the power of the evil chakra even after he left. "Iwashi, look after Genma and Raido until I return. I'm going to investigate." She ordered the jonin.

"But Shizune-san…!" He said as he was about to protest.

"Do as I say!" She countered in an authoritative tone.

"Y-Yes Shizune-san…" Iwashi said in compliance. Wasting no time, she jumped into the trees and followed his trail, praying that Naruto wouldn't do anything he would regret later.

A little further in the forest, the bodyguards of the snake sannin Orochimaru were taking a rest from their battle with the two jonins.

"We are trying to hurry, and yet we have to deal with these things…" Sakon said with disgust.

"We didn't have much of a choice. Using the curse seal at level two takes too much out of us. Tayuya said as she panted.

"Nevertheless, not being able to use your body is a bit…inconvenient." Jirobo said exhaustedly.

"There wasn't much of a choice against those jonin. If we hadn't used our curse marks, we could have been defeated." Kidomaru said honestly. The others nodded in agreement with the spider armed ninja. All of a sudden, as if out of nowhere, they immediately sensed an evil chakra surrounding them on all sides.

"W-What the fuck is this…this chakra surrounding us?" The flutist said out loud, making the normally fearless kunoichi quiver in her boots. As if her question was being answered, a large chakra claw came out of nowhere and grabbed Kidomaru. In less than a minute, before the member of Sound Four could do anything, the claw squeezed him like a compress, while the red chakra charred his flesh. After hearing his wail like scream, Kidomaru was literally crushed like a grape by the claw, spraying his blood all over his companions. The three remaining members, despite the terror that was now flowing through their veins, immediately pulled out their weapons and got into a battle stance. They looked all over to see where their enemy was. The didn't have to wait long, as he showed his face a minute later with his four chakra tails swaying behind him.

"**RRRAGH!!**" Kyubi Naruto boomed as he jumped towards his victims, with their piercing screams being heard a few minutes later.

_Fifteen minutes later_

Shizune followed the trail that Naruto took as best she could, despite his chakra signal fading just a few minutes ago. She soon wouldn't need it, as she picked up the scent of blood and burnt flesh. Following this new scent, the med-nin came upon a clearing. What she saw there would burn itself into her memory forever. Walking cautiously past the trees and the bushes, she saw the corpses of the Sound Four and the now dead Uchiha Sasuke, their limbs, body parts, and the destroyed coffin that the raven haired ninja was in, strewn all over the area.

"Oh Kami-sama…" Shizune mumbled as she covered her hand over her face, trying her hardest not to throw up. Walking past the body parts as they squished under her foot, she could hear someone crying, ever so faintly. "Is anyone there?" She called out. Hearing no reply, she followed the sounds of the sobs until she came upon Naruto. He was curled up in a ball on the ground, with his clothes shredded and torn and completely covered with blood, bawling his eyes out.

"Naruto-kun…" The med-nin whispered with a face full of pity. She leaned down and gently tapped his shoulder, causing him to slightly flinch. He slowly turned his head towards her, giving her a blank look on his face. "Naruto-kun…are you alright?" She asked softly.

"S-Shizune-neec-chan…" Naruto replied as his head fell to the ground.

"Naruto-kun!!" Tsunade's assistant shouted as he closed his eyes and blacked out.

_Konoha Hospital-Three days later_

A quiet, but heavy rain fell outside Konoha. But it didn't disturb the spiky blond as he laid in the hospital bed that he has been unconscious for the past three days. Sitting in a chair next to him reading a book and drinking some tea was Shizune, who was requested by Tsunade to watch over him for his safety after finding out what happened. Her assistant agreed without hesitation.

"Shizune…" A voice called out to her from behind. The med-nin turned her head to see her master coming in silently.

"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune said as she put down her book on the desk next to the bed.

"How is Naruto-kun doing?" The Godaime Hokage inquired.

"He's sleeping peacefully, just like he was since I brought him in two days ago." She answered.

"I'm surprised he can, after everything that has happened to him." Tsunade said joylessly.

"I know. How is Sakura doing?" Shizune asked.

"I'm afraid her condition is still the same. Every time she wakes up, she won't respond to anyone, she still refuses to let any men come near, and she keeps calling out for Naruto to help her." The female sannin replied with a heavy sigh.

"I see…" She said lowering her head slightly.

"That little arrogant, power hungry Uchiha bastard! In less than a day, he destroyed both of his comrades. Even if they make a full recovery, neither of them will ever be the same…" Tsunade said bitterly.

"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune said, understanding how she felt completely. Truth be told, she felt the same way. It was that moment that Naruto's eyes began to open.

"Unhh…Where am I?" Naruto asked groggily.

"You're in Konoha Naruto-kun. You've been out for three days. We were really worried." Shizune answered with a warm smile.

"Shizune-neechan, Tsunade-baachan…" The spiky blonde said. Tsunade walked and sat on the side of his bed.

"How are you feeling Naruto-kun?" Tsunade questioned.

"I…I'm okay now, I guess." He replied as he turned his head away from her in shame. The legendary sucker had noticed this and knew why he did that.

"It's okay Naruto-kun…" She said as she took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"But…but I…" Naruto stammered as his voice started to break.

"I know that you would never hurt me Naruto-kun. It wasn't your fault. You weren't yourself." The beautiful blond said in a soothing tone.

"But…to those ninjas…and Sasuke…I…I…" The spiky blond choked as he looked at the Hokage with tears falling down his face. Tsunade said nothing and pulled the young man into her embrace as he began to cry hard into her chest.

"You did it because you cared about Sakura and was angry at Sasuke for what he did to her. If he was a true friend, a true comrade to you two, he would never have did that to Sakura, and he never would have betrayed Konoha to go with those enemy ninjas. The mission I was going to give you and the others was to bring him back, by any means necessary. Even if you didn't kill Sasuke and those ninjas, he would have been executed for his crimes against Sakura and for betraying the village. So don't be hard on yourself. Nobody is angry with you or blames you for what you did. If any of us were in your situation, we would have done the same." Tsunade told him as she rubbed his back gently.

"But my friends. They saw me. They're going to hate me now, just like everyone else." Naruto sobbed as he grabbed the lower end of her shirt.

"Don't worry about that Naruto-kun. Although they don't know the truth, they're concerned about you more than anything. Look." Shizune said as she sat down on the bed as well and pointed to the desk next to his bed. Naruto lifted his head from the Hokage's chest and looked to where Shizune was pointing. On the desk next to his bed were a number of flowers and get well cards from all of the rookies, including the ones who saw the incident that day. He calmed down a little bit and managed to force a small smile at the two women.

"Tsunade-baachan, Shizune-neechan, thank you." He said as he wiped his tears from his face.

"It's our pleasure after all you've done for the both of us." Tsunade said as both women gave him their best smile. A minute later, they both enveloped him in a group hug, which Naruto gladly returned.

_Twenty minutes and a meal later_

"I see. So that's what's happened to Sakura-chan." Naruto said as Tsunade and Shizune discussed the kunoichi's current condition.

"Yes. When Sakura's conscious, she calls out for you to save her. That's why Ino ran to you that day and asked for your help." The female sannin explained to him.

"Can I…go see her? I want to help her, if I can." The spiky blond requested.

"Of course Naruto-kun. We were going to ask you when you woke up anyway." Shizune replied.

"Just remember Naruto-kun, Sakura is still in a very fragile state. If she doesn't respond to you, then back off and give her space." Tsunade warned him firmly, but gently.

"Got it Tsunade-baachan." He said as he nodded in understanding. After moving the empty hospital tray, he slid out of the bed and was helped up by Shizune. But just as he was about to head to the door, Hatake Kakashi entered through it.

"Well, it looks like you're finally up and about Naruto." Kakashi said in his usual laid back tone. But Naruto wasn't in the mood for pleasantries with the jonin.

"What are you doing here?!" Naruto asked in a hard voice as he glared at him.

"What…? Why wouldn't I be here?" The copy ninja asked with a raised eyebrow in confusion.

"Hmmph…well after what happened to that perverted teme ('Why you' in a disrespectful way. Also used as a slang word for bastard.), I figured you'd be mourning over his grave and ignoring Sakura and me like you always do. After all, you said he was just like you, right Kakashi-sensei?" The spiky blonde said coldly as he looked him in the eye while spitting out his name, effectively shocking everyone in the room. Naruto's words hit the jonin like a cold hard slap to the face as he remembered telling the spiky blond why he preferred to train Sasuke during the chunin exam finals.

"Naruto…I…" Kakashi started to say as he lowered his head.

"Save it, you perverted scarecrow! You talked about us being a team and working together! You criticized me about doing everything alone! And yet when I, no, WE needed you the most, you abandoned me and went to Sasuke again and again and stuck me with that closet perv! All while making up stupid excuses for being late and sticking your head in that damn perverted book!" Naruto berated angrily.

"Naruto-kun!" Shizune said in a scolding manner. However, Tsunade raised her hand to her assistant and shook her head as if to tell her not to interfere.

"But Naruto, I was only trying to…" The copy ninja tried to defend himself, but Naruto wasn't hearing any of it.

"Sakura told me about the curse mark Orochimaru gave him in the Forest of Death on the night when that…crap happened to her. If you were a **real leader**, you would have told me the truth and we all would have dealt with it as a team, which you drilled into our heads during that test. But I guess I was still a reckless idiot to you, wasn't I? Even though I always came through for you since we became a team, and ended up saving your life **twice**, you never believed in me or listened to me, especially after I warned you about Gaara, who came very close to destroying our village with a single breath thanks to Shukaku. It was always Sasuke this or Sasuke that! I thought, as my sensei, my friend, and as someone who was trained by the Yondaime, you would be proud of me when you saw me use the Rasengan. A jutsu I used to save Tsunade-baachan from Kabuto, who even you couldn't handle! A technique which I learned faster than the Yondaime and Ero-sennin **combined**! But I was wrong. And for the record, Sasuke wasn't the only person I wanted acknowledgement from; I also wanted it from you. But I guess it doesn't matter now…not anymore…" The spiky blond ranted to his sensei as he lowered his head sadly at the end.

"Naruto-kun…" Tsunade said sympathetically. Finally finishing his tirade at the copy ninja, he walked past him towards the door without even looking at him.

"I'm sorry…" Kakashi said quietly, making the spiky blond stop for a moment.

"It's too late for apologies Kakashi-sensei. But what else is new." Naruto said somberly as he closed the door behind him.

"Sorry about that Kakashi. He's not himself right now." Tsunade apologized on Naruto's behalf.

"It's alright Hokage-sama. I deserved everything Naruto threw at me, if not more…" He said with his head lowered in disgrace.

_Five minutes later_

As he headed upstairs to the next floor, Naruto let out a heavy sigh and decided to put away all the anger he had for the copy ninja for the moment as he now focused all his attentions on Sakura.

'Sakura-chan. If only I had insisted on walking you home that night, none of this would have happened.' Naruto thought depressingly. He shook his head to remove those negative thoughts as he made it to the top of the stairs. He walked towards the pink haired girl's room and reached for the knob when suddenly the door opened. Coming out of the door was Yamanaka Ino with a distressed look on her face. When she saw Naruto's face, she gasped and looked at him straight in the eyes.

"I-Ino…" He said nervously, remembering that she saw him when he was Kyubified.

"Naruto…" She said above a whisper.

"Ino, I-" Before he could start, she ran to him and embraced him as she started to cry in his chest, seeking his comfort.

"Why Naruto? Why did Sasuke do that to her? Why would he betray us like that?" Ino whimpered as she he held onto him tighter. After taking a moment to compose himself, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. Both of them would honestly admit that they weren't close to each other. But after this tragedy that involved someone they mutually cared about, it brought them to this moment. And neither of them would deny the other some comfort in this sad time.

"I don't know why he did any of this Ino. I…I wish I did." Naruto replied, trying his hardest to be strong for the kunoichi. He truly wanted to answer her questions, to ease her pain. But it was questions he knew he couldn't answer, and unfortunately never would. A few minutes later, the platinum blonde pulled away and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry Naruto…" Ino said as she lowered her head. He placed a hand under her chin and lifted her head, giving her a warm smile while shaking his head.

"No need to apologize Ino. You can cry on my shoulder anytime." He said softly.

"Thank you Naruto. Are you alright?" She asked with genuine concern.

"Yeah, I'll be okay." He answered.

"I'm glad…" She said honestly.

"Ino, about what happened…when I…" Naruto said, but Ino put a finger over his lips and shook her head.

"It's alright Naruto. You don't have to talk about that right now if you don't want to…" Ino said with assurance.

"Are you sure it's okay Ino?" He questioned her.

"Yeah, Sakura is what's important now. But don't push your luck. I won't be so nice next time." The kunoichi said as she playfully put her hands on her hips. A minute later they both let out a light chuckle.

"Thanks Ino." Naruto said as he let out a huge sigh of relief.

"No problem. I just hope we get to hear Sakura laugh again…" The platinum blonde said dismally.

"We will Ino. We'll help Sakura-chan get through this, together." Naruto said as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Yes…" Ino said with a grateful smile to her fellow blond. Naruto returned the smile and together they went inside Sakura's room. Sitting silently at the front of the bed was Mrs. Haruno.

"I'm back Haruno-san." The kunoichi said in a moderate tone.

"Ino. I thought you were going to get some air." She said as she tilted her head slightly to look at her, not noticing the spiky blonde was behind her.

"I was. But I ran into Naruto." Ino replied as Naruto moved in front of her. The elder woman's eyes widened when she saw the young man. She couldn't help but remember all the times she pulled her daughter away from him and said horrible things about him because of the demon inside of him when he was a child, and it made her heart ache over her foolishness. She slowly got up and walked over to him. Naruto turned his head away from her slightly. As much as he tried to forget, he always remembered the faces of the ones who treated him badly. She frowned when she saw this, but she wasn't surprised at his reaction and honestly couldn't blame him. Ino looked at them curiously, but remained silent.

"Uzumaki Naruto…" She said.

"Haruno-san…" He said in a quiet tone. Letting out a deep and painful sigh, the woman directly walked up to him until she faced him, got on her hands and knees and deeply bowed to him with her head down. Naruto was completely stunned and turned his head to her, gasping in shock.

"Naruto-san…I'm sorry. I know…that I have no right to ask this of you. Especially after… the way me and Sakura treated you. But…I beg of you…for my daughter's sake. Please…please help her. Please save my daughter…" Mrs. Haruno pleaded to him as tears fell from her eyes onto the floor.

"Haruno-san…" Ino said sadly. She stayed on her hands and knees continuing to bow to him, when she felt a soft hand touch her shoulder. She looked up and saw the spiky blond looking at her bending down on one knee.

"Haruno-san, please don't bow to me…" Naruto said with nothing but kindness in his voice as he took her hand and lifted her up.

"But I…" She started to say before he raised a hand to silence her.

"I would have done it even if you didn't ask me. Like you, Sakura-chan is important to me. I don't know what I'll be able to do for her. But if me being here helps her recover, even if it's a little, then I'll do it." He told her with conviction and fire in his eyes.

"Thank you so much Naruto-san." She said as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Please Haruno-san, Naruto is just fine." He said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly causing Ino to let out a giggle. "Like Ino said in the hall, Sakura is what matters right now. Let's work together and try to help her." He said. Both of the women nodded their heads in agreement. Taking a few deep breaths, Naruto prepared himself and walked over to Sakura's bed.

"Naruto…please help me…don't let Sasuke hurt me…" Sakura said in a zombie like voice as she continued to look ahead, oblivious of her surroundings.

"Oh Sakura-chan…" The spiky blond whispered as his heart broke and tears stung his eyes at seeing her like this. He felt a hand on each of his shoulders and saw Ino and Mrs. Haruno by his side. They both silently nodded and smiled at him, as if they were giving him their courage and support. Naruto nodded back and sat down on the side of Sakura's bed. "Sakura-chan, it's me. I'm right here Sakura-chan…" He said softly as he slowly reached out and touched her hand. When his hand made contact with hers, she suddenly scream in horror and started to cry.

"NO! DON'T TOUCH ME! NARUTO, HELP ME! PLEASE SAVE ME!!" She shouted at the top of her lungs as she struggled to get away from him. She accidentally punched him in his eye during her struggles, making him wince and groan in pain. But he held on to her.

"Calm down Sakura-chan!! It's me, Naruto!! I here Sakura-chan! Your mom is here! Ino is here too! You're safe now! Please come back to us!" Naruto told her as softly as he could. Making sure not to cause her any pain, he firmly placed his hands on her shoulders to gently stop her flailing, while looking at her directly in the eyes. When she opened her eyes for a second and saw his gentle cerulean blues, she suddenly relaxed and started to look deep into his eyes as if she just woke up from a long sleep.

"Naruto…? Is it you…is it really you?" She asked him with a desperately pleading tone in her voice. Looking deeper into her sad emerald pupils, he started to cry silently.

"Yes Sakura-chan…It's me…It's really me…" Naruto said in a tender voice. She slowly lifted her shaking pale hands and touched his face, as if she was trying to make sure he was real. Her fingertips pressed lightly on his whisker like marks, her eyes never blinking, not even for a second. He moved his hands when she went up to his spiky hair and touched it, feeling its softness. He gave her one of his trademark grins to give her more assurance, and it sealed the deal. She lowered her hands and looked at him silently for a minute. Her face then started to scrunch up, and all the sorrow she's kept in her for the past three days finally came out of her.

"**NARUTO…!!**" Sakura shouted in relief as she dives at him and starts to loudly wail and sob, burying her face into his chest, clinging onto him as if he was her lifeline, which he clearly was as far as she was concerned. Naruto held her tightly without hesitation and gently placed his chin on top of her head.

"Welcome back Sakura-chan…" Naruto said as he cried along with her. Not a dry eye was in the room as Ino and Mrs. Haruno started to cry too.

"Naruto…Sasuke…he…he…" Sakura hiccupped in a hoarse voice.

"I know…Sasuke won't hurt you anymore. He's gone now. Nobody will ever hurt you like that again." The spiky blonde said as he consoled her by stroking her hair.

"You…you promise…?" The pink haired girl sniffed.

"I promise Sakura-chan. I swore I would protect you. And I'll never go back on my word." He answered her as he pulled away slightly to look at her. She lifted her head and looked at him with child like eyes, and he gave her a warm smile.

"Sakura!" Ino and Mrs. Haruno called out to her. She turned her head and looked at their faces as if for the first time.

"Mom…Ino…" Sakura cried as she moved her arm out to welcome them into her and Naruto's embrace. They immediately went to her and hugged her completely encircling her with their warmth. Sakura continued to let all of her pain out while being surrounded by the people she loved.

While this was happening, the rain that poured in Konoha had stopped and a small sliver of light shined from a break in the clouds into the pink haired kunoichi's room. The four of them knew that this was only the beginning of this long arduous journey towards the healing process. A journey that could possibly take years before it's complete. But in order for broken hearts to be mended, like any journey, a single step must be took. And it was taken on this day. A very, very small step. But a step nonetheless.

Author's note 2: Damn :(. This was definitely one of the hardest things I ever wrote. Especially in regards to my own morals. It truly was not easy to write this, my friends (There's a reason why all of my stories have happy endings.). **NO ONE** should ever have to experience what Sakura had to experience in this story. But something compelled me that I should write this, and this chapter is finished, thank Kami. Once again, I deeply and sincerely apologize to any person(s), be they male or female, that I upset, offend or hurt due to the content in this chapter :(. It is not my intention to do so. I hope that it touched you the way it touched me at the end. I also apologize for the slight Kakashi bashing in the story. I truly like the copy ninja, but what Naruto said to him served a purpose in this chapter. As for the OOCness, well, don't say I didn't warn you ;).

Now as I said earlier, this is an 'experimental' story that I wrote here. Whether this fic is continued or not is entirely up to you. So I ask you guys to do what you do best. Read, Enjoy and Review. Let me know your thoughts and your feelings on this. It's very important. And try to remember that the content in this story does not reflect my personal views or beliefs. As long as you can understand that and you read the story in its entirety, it's all good. I have the other 'experimental' story up ASAP. Once I put that one up too, I'll finish my work on chapter 9 of TCOC (I'm trying to get it out before the end of November. I really am!) , which will then become my main priority from that point on. Until then, I'll see you soon. Later :).


	2. Ch 2 Revelation of Sins

How can you mend a broken heart? By Mr. Lee

Disclaimer: This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only. The author of this fanfiction does not own Naruto or its characters. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Any other similarities in this story are purely coincidental.

Author's note: Happy New Year everyone :)! Mr. Lee is here with chapter two of this Dark NaruSaku story, which you, my fans, have **overwhelmingly** told me to continue. Now I know that those of you who saw my profile have seen the notice that I'm taking a temporary hiatus from my writing due to certain life issues and from writer's block. And I'm still on hiatus. But I came up with this chapter on New Year's Eve and I'm leaving it for you readers to look at. As for TCOC, chapter nine is halfway done, but I have serious writer's block with the other half. So I'm afraid you're going to have to wait a little longer for that. Sorry :(.

In any case, I thank all of you for the reviews and the e-mails for this story. It's much appreciated as always. Now to answer certain questions that has been asked of me in this story. The answer to whether Sakura is pregnant or not will be answered in this chapter. Also, an anonymous reviewer mentioned how mature Naruto was as well as how Tsunade was acting. In case you didn't know, I make it a habit when I write Naruto stories, to bring out the more human side of the Naruto characters, while keeping them true to themselves as much as possible. There are too many stories that show Naruto as an idiot (Which he honestly isn't if you look deep enough.). This also goes for the anime as well. I wanted to change that since the series only skims the human part of the characters that make this such a great anime. Besides, this is a serious story. You wouldn't want Naruto to act stupid during a serious situation like this do you? Though certain characters will be a little OOC (I did warn you in chapter 1, didn't I?), they will stay pretty much true to their core selves.

The next thing that was asked was why Naruto lashed out at Kakashi. Well, that will be dwelled on slightly in this chapter. But there has been much controversy with Kakashi in regards of his treatment of Naruto and Sakura, from training them to his overall attitude of them in the first part of the series. I won't get into it, but after this chapter, you'll just have to judge for yourselves.

And last, but not least, why did Sasuke rape Sakura? In all honesty, it's not that difficult to believe that he would do that. Think about it from this point of view. Itachi killed all the members of his clan, even his mother who was always supportive of him, to 'test the limits of his abilities'. He also told Sasuke that if he wanted to kill him that he must hate and despise him, despite Fugaku telling Sasuke not to follow his brother.

Now when Sasuke fought him when Itachi went after Naruto, he told him that he would never have enough hate in him to kill him. And if you paid attention during the hospital battle between Sasuke and Naruto, you noticed that Naruto wanted to beat him, while Sasuke was more intense in the fight to the point of wanting to kill him (Which Kakashi mentioned to a degree when he scolded Sasuke after the fight.).

It wasn't just about revenge for Sasuke. He was jealous and envious of Naruto, since he always put him down for being weak in the beginning, only to have Naruto surpass him. And as you know, Envy is a sin that can bring out the worse in us as humans. Naruto himself said during the battle at the VoTE that he was jealous of Sasuke and he genuinely hated him. But his jealously never got the best of him and he ended up calling him a friend. Unfortunately, in Sasuke's case, it got the best of him. It's probably one of the many reasons why Sasuke wanted to kill Naruto at the VoTE (Him acquiring the Mangekyo Sharingan is just one of many.).

Now what does this have to do with him raping Sakura? It's simple. I believe that that classic SasuSaku meeting before he left Konoha could have gone a number of ways. This is just one of them, because I'm sure that Sasuke knows that Naruto loves Sakura. He went to Orochimaru for power in order to kill his brother. He had no intention of returning to Konoha to go after Naruto (Though from the looks of anger and hatred Sasuke had when he looked and thought about Naruto, I wouldn't put it past him.). But let's say Sasuke wanted to take out his anger, jealousy and envy on someone Naruto cares about, but who he considers weaker than Naruto. You come up with Sakura.

Sasuke has constantly put her down and mentioned on a number of occasions that she was weaker than Naruto, despite her saying that Naruto was weak at one time. Naruto has surpassed him in every turn, except for getting together with the pink haired kunoichi. And in his mind, what better way to hurt Naruto than to hurt someone precious to him. Besides, in Shippuden, Sasuke doesn't hesitate trying to kill both of them when they get in his way. Fighting isn't the only way to break a person's spirit. And unfortunately, most cruel and heartless bastards who rape innocent women consider it as a form of power or a way of retaliation or revenge against someone else. By Sasuke doing that to Sakura, he did both and broke Sakura's (Who he considered annoying) and Naruto's (Who he was envious enough for him to attempt killing him more than once.) spirit. When you look at it like that, with Sasuke's actions throughout the series, it's not entirely impossible for that to happen. He made his choices without regret, regardless of other people's feelings or the consequences of his actions. And he is willing to kill the only people that care about him in order to accomplish his goals. As an Arabic proverb goes: Be careful of your enemy once and of your friend a thousand times, for a double crossing friend knows more evil.

Phew…That was a long explanation. But I hope that it answers the question overall. Now that that's out of the way, let's get to chapter two. It will be a **very long, angsty tearjerker of a chapter**, **so be warned** (Make sure you bring some Kleenex when you read this. No joke.) ! And there will be a couple of surprises revealed, so be prepared for that as well. But hang in there. After this chapter, it will lighten up **significantly**, so try to ride out the storm as best as you can. Okay, here we go. Enjoy :)!

**Chapter 2- Revelation of Sins**

It has been over a week since Sakura was pulled out of the abyss by Naruto, and the road to recovery has been a very difficult one to say the least. Naruto was discharged and released from the hospital, but as a precaution, he has been placed on twenty-four hour surveillance on the orders of the council during an emergency meeting. Not that he really cared, since all he really did was go shopping for food and stayed at home since Tsunade forbade him from doing any ninja duties, training included until further tests and a decision from the events that happened several days ago were finished. Most villagers, instead of glaring at him when he walked past, now avoided him like the plague after hearing rumors of what happened since Tsunade didn't make the incident public yet. And he couldn't speak with his friends either since they were on missions of their own. But that was fine with him. He needed to have some time alone, some time to think about what happened, and what was to come.

As for Sakura, she became more aware and alert of her surroundings, and her appetite returned, which helped her get discharged into her mother's care five days after 'waking up'. However, she is still somewhat uncomfortable around men, with the exception of Naruto, strangely enough. But thankfully, she no longer screams or goes out of control when one is near her. Like Naruto, Sakura too needed time to herself. Mainly because she knew that despite what happened to her, there would be consequences for the words she mentioned to the now dead Uchiha. And those consequences may very well cost her everything.

A few days later, Naruto and Sakura were summoned to Hokage Tower by Tsunade to speak to them on the incidents that happened. The two haven't spoken to each other since her awakening, so needless to say, they were surprised to see each other at the entrance of the tower.

"Hey Sakura-chan…" Naruto called out to her in a surprisingly normal voice.

"Oh. Hey Naruto. It's been a while…" Sakura said in a quiet voice.

"Yeah. We haven't spoken to each other since…w-well…y-you know…" The spiky blond said as he rubbed the back of his head as a blush of embarrassment crept up on his face.

"Y-Yeah…" The pink haired kunoichi stammered as she blushed as well. Neither knew what to say, for each of them had something holding them back.

'Why can't I tell her what happened to Sasuke? She'll probably hate me when she finds out the truth, despite what that bastard did to her.' He thought depressingly.

'Why can't I tell him what I was planning to do with Sasuke? He'll probably hate me for everything I've done to him. Not that I blame him.' She thought joylessly. They remained silent for a few more minutes until the blond ninja started to speak.

"So, how are you feeling?" Naruto asked her gently.

"I'm feeling a little better. After you helped me, Hokage-sama used her psychological healing on me and I can eat normally now. She said it's going to take time, but I'll make a full recovery." Sakura replied.

"That's great Sakura-chan!" Naruto said happily as he took her hands and held them. He realized what he did and released her a few seconds later. "S-Sorry Sakura-chan…" He said quietly.

"No. It's okay Naruto." She said as she turned her head away from him. They became silent once more until she began to speak a few minutes later. "Did Hokage-sama call you?" She asked.

"Yeah, you too?" Naruto asked back.

"Yes…" Sakura replied quietly.

"Well, we better not keep her waiting…" He told her with a smile.

"Right. Let's go." Sakura said as she gave him a small smile. As they went inside, Naruto began to cough violently, making him cover his mouth. "Naruto, are you alright? That was a nasty cough." She asked with concern. Naruto looked at his hand and noticed that there was blood on it.

"It's nothing Sakura-chan. Let's go." Naruto said as he quickly wiped the blood from his hand. They went upstairs to her office without another word. But the guilt that they held continued to plague their minds.

'Sorry Sakura-chan.' He said in his head.

'Sorry Naruto.' She said in her mind. As they went to the front of her door, Shizune was waiting for them.

"Did Tsunade-baachan call for us Shizune-neechan?" Naruto inquired.

"Yes she did Naruto-kun. Just wait here for a moment and I'll call her." The dark haired med-nin answered as she went inside while Naruto and Sakura sat down in the waiting area. As promised, a moment later, she returned. "Alright, Tsunade-sama is ready to see you two. Sakura, you'll be first. And Naruto will be seen last." Shizune told them.

"Alright. I'll see you shortly Naruto." Sakura said.

"Okay Sakura-chan!" Naruto said with a grin which made her smile. She nodded to him and went inside where the Godaime Hokage was waiting for her. Tsunade hands were folded with her head on top of them.

"Thank you for coming Sakura. Please sit down." Tsunade said with a mix of friendliness and seriousness. Sakura did as she was told as Tsunade leaned back in her chair. "First things first, how are you feeling?" She asked.

"I'm feeling better thanks to your healing Hokage-sama. And Naruto's help." The pink haired kunoichi replied.

"Are you still uncomfortable around men?" The female sannin questioned.

"Yes. But it's not as bad as before. I'm still comfortable around Naruto. I came inside with him." Sakura replied as her face became flushed after mentioning his name.

"I see. Well that's good. Don't worry Sakura. I know that things are very hard for you right now. But in time, you'll make a full recovery." Tsunade said with a small smile.

"Thanks Hokage-sama…" Sakura said.

"Now then, there are two reasons why I have called you here." The legendary sucker started as she stood up and got into Kage mode. "The first is that after this meeting, you'll go to the hospital with Shizune to get a pregnancy test." She said. Sakura lowered her head, closed her eyes and clutched the bottom of her red dress after hearing her words. Tsunade frowned as she looked at the kunoichi, but she understood why she reacted that way.

"Yes Hokage-sama…" Sakura said in a melancholic voice.

"Don't worry Sakura, no matter what happens, we're here for you. Especially your mother, Ino and Naruto…" The female sannin reassured her as she placed a hand on her shoulder. The kunoichi raised her head while tears stung her eyes and gave the Hokage a sad smile.

"You're right. Thank you." She said. 'Though I don't deserve any of them. Especially Naruto.' She added somberly in her mind. "What's the second reason you wanted to see me?" She asked. The Godaime let out a heavy sigh and sat back down at her desk.

"Well, as much as I hate to ask you this, as the Hokage and at the request of the council during the emergency meeting, I have no choice. I need you to tell me what happened between you and Sasuke before he…did what he did to you. And in order to complete the report, I need to hear the whole truth." Tsunade told her with a heavy heart. Sakura lowered her head once more. She knew that this day was coming. The day that she would have to reveal her sin.

"I understand Hokage-sama…" The pink haired kunoichi said in a low voice.

"Are you sure you're up to this Sakura? We can wait until you're ready." Shizune said as she placed her hands on the young lady's shoulders while standing behind her.

"Thank you Shizune-san. But I'm alright. I'll tell you everything." Sakura said with a sigh. The kunoichi began to explain what happened after the battle between her teammates on the hospital roof. Her 'date' with Naruto at Ichiraku and what she did afterwards. Everything she said to Sasuke and her plans to go with him. And finally, Sasuke's words before and after the horrid event. Tsunade asked Sakura a few times if she wanted to stop, since she knew this was painful for her. But the kunoichi said that she was okay and finished her story. After hearing everything, the female sannin let out a heavy sigh that was full of pity for the girl. Especially in regards to what she was about to say.

"Haruno Sakura…What Uchiha Sasuke did to you was horrible, unforgivable and inexcusable. And you have my heartfelt sympathies as a woman and as the Hokage. But at the same time, despite your reasons for doing it, your words and actions **before** the incident can be considered an act of treason against the village since you were willing to leave here and betray us in order to go with Sasuke to Orochimaru. Though it pains me to do this, I will have to report this to the council and then we will have to decide your fate. Do you understand Sakura?" Tsunade asked with a serious expression on her face as she rubbed her temples.

"Yes. I take full responsibility for my actions…" Sakura replied with a light sob as tears fell down her face.

"Very well then. Until the decision is made, you are forbidden from leaving the village without my approval, and are hereby suspended as a Konoha ninja. Please give me your hitae-ate (Forehead protector)…" The female sannin requested. Sakura wiped her tears from her face and nodded silently as she removed her hitae-ate from her hair and walked up to her desk, folding it and placing it gently in front of the Godaime.

"I'm sorry Hokage-sama…" Sakura said as she bowed to her.

"I am too Sakura." Tsunade said with her eyes closed as she took the kunoichi's headband.

"I have a question Hokage-sama. When Naruto helped me, he told me that Sasuke wouldn't hurt me anymore. I don't have the courage to ask him, but can you tell me what happened to him?" Sakura questioned. After what happened to her, her feelings for the Uchiha died in that cold place he violated her. But she still wanted to know the truth of what happened to her ex-crush.

"Sakura…I don't think that's a good idea." The beautiful blond replied.

"Please Hokage-sama. I need to know. Please tell me the truth." She pleaded.

'I hope I know what I'm doing.' Tsunade said with a sigh. "I can't give you all the details, for a number of reasons. But Uchiha Sasuke is dead." She told her honestly.

"Sasuke is dead?!" The pink haired girl asked with a gasp.

"Yes. He was killed…by Uzumaki Naruto…" She said gravely. The blood in Sakura's body became cold after hearing the truth. She started to cry hard, but her tears were not for Sasuke.

'Naruto… You must've done it when you found out what Sasuke did to me. No wonder you haven't come to see me or talk to me after I woke up. You must feel so guilty that you killed Sasuke…You must think that I'd hate you when I found out. And knowing me, I would hate you if none of this happened. Why…why do I always make you suffer?' She thought as she drowned in her sorrowful guilt. Tsunade walked up to her and embraced her in a gentle hug.

"I know what you're thinking Sakura. Naruto told me how much you cared about Sasuke. But you mustn't hate Naruto for what he did." Tsunade told her as she rubbed her back. Sakura shook her head and looked up at the Godaime.

"No Hokage-sama. I don't know why, but I don't hate him. I'm not even angry at him. But I know that he'll hate **me** when he finds out what I said to Sasuke. That night, he was there to support me, only to betray his trust by going after Sasuke. He's always been so good to me. And yet I…I…" She couldn't even finish as she buried her head in the ninja leader's chest.

"Sakura…" Tsunade said dismally. Sakura cried for several more minutes before calming down and releasing the Hokage's embrace. "Are you alright now?" She asked gently.

"Yes, I'm okay now. Thank you for telling me the truth." Sakura replied a bit hoarsely.

"Don't worry about it. Shizune, escort Sakura to the hospital to take the pregnancy test and send Naruto in." She ordered her assistant.

"Yes Tsunade-sama." Shizune said quietly as she led Sakura out of the Hokage's office. As soon as they exited, Naruto stood up and turned to them.

"Hey Sakura-chan, how did it go?" Naruto asked curiously. Sakura immediately turned her head away from him in shame, since she didn't want Naruto to see her like this. "What's wrong Sakura-chan?" He asked with concern as he looked at the dry tears on the side of her face.

"It…It's nothing Naruto. I…I'll talk to you later." The young woman replied with her head still turned away. Naruto looked at Shizune as he silently asked her what's wrong. But the med-nin just shook her head at him, as if telling him not to ask. He nodded his head in understanding.

"Oh…okay. I guess…I'll see you later." He said quietly with his hair covering his eyes as he let Sakura pass without looking at her.

"Tsunade-sama said you could go in Naruto-kun." Shizune said.

"Thanks Shizune-neechan." Naruto said as he went through the door. "Hey Tsunade-baachan." Naruto said as he lifted his head to greet her.

"I wish you would stop calling me that. Oh, never mind. Have a seat." Tsunade said as he sat down. "The reason I wanted to talk to you was because I wanted to know if you remember anything that happened when you used Kyubi's chakra." She said getting straight to the point.

"Yes. Though not everything." Naruto said dismally.

"If you're still concerned about you punching me, don't worry. You know that I've forgiven you." The female sannin said with a reassuring smile.

"I know Tsunade-baachan. But the truth is that I asked the fox to give it to me." The spiky blond told her honestly.

"**You did what?!!**" Tsunade shouted as she sat up and slammed her hands on her desk, making him cringe.

"W-Well, when you told me what Sasuke did to Sakura, I-I just got so angry, that I went to the furball's chamber in my head and told him that I wanted to make Sasuke pay for what he did to her. The fox laughed and said that he would be glad to give me some 'extra rent' and gave me as much chakra as I wanted. W-When the chakra surrounded me; I blacked out and woke up surrounded by all the body parts of those ninjas and Sasuke. Shizune-neechan found me and I blacked out again. And…you know the rest." Naruto explained with a hint of fear throughout his explanation. Tsunade closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. Naruto visibly gulped and hoped that she wasn't thinking about punching him.

"Naruto-kun, how were you able to communicate with the Kyubi and access his chakra?" She asked him in a dangerously calm voice.

"I learned from my training with Ero-sennin (Perverted Hermit.)." He answered truthfully as he started to sweat.

'Figures. The stupid idiot…' The female sannin thought with a scowl on her face. "Naruto-kun, I want you to tell me how you met Jiraiya, how he trained you and what you two have done together, from beginning to end. **And don't hold anything back!**" She ordered in a harsh tone.

"Y-Yes Tsunade-baachan." The spiky blond said in a mouse like voice. 'Wow! She looks really scary…' He thought as he started to explain everything from his first meeting with the sage at the hot springs from up until now. And like she asked, he held nothing back and left out no detail, and it took nearly an hour to finish. After hearing the whole story, The Godaime Hokage's vein was pulsing on her forehead, she grinded her teeth and was ripping off pieces of her wooden desk with her monstrous strength. All she could think of was one thing and one thing only.

'**I'M…GOING…TO…KILL…THAT…PERVERT!!!**' She screamed in her mind as she started to growl, which caused Naruto to slowly move his chair away from her. She snaps out of her murderous mood when she hears Naruto coughing loudly. "Are you okay Naruto?" Tsunade asked with concern as she got up and started to walk to him. Naruto moved his hand from his mouth and noticed that there was blood in it once more.

"D-Don't worry. It…It's nothing Tsunade-baachan." The young man replied quickly as he started to wipe the blood from his hand.

"Oh really? Then what's that streak of nothing on your cheek?" She questioned sarcastically when she pointed to a streak of blood on his cheek. Before he could do anything about it, Tsunade went into med-nin mode and wiped up the blood streak with her finger and put it to her nose.

'Is this blood?' She thought seriously as she took a whiff of it. After wiping it off, she flicked Naruto on the forehead, but only enough to make him feel it.

"Ow! What was that for, you old hag?!" Naruto yelled.

"You brat! Why didn't you tell me that you've been coughing up blood?! How long has this been happening?" She shouted back with genuine concern. Naruto's face began to soften when he saw the painful look on her face. He knew that she was really worried and felt bad for causing her to feel that way.

"I'm sorry Tsunade-baachan. It's been happening for a couple of days now. But I thought it was nothing since I always feel better after a good night's sleep. I didn't mean to make you worry." The spiky blond replied with regret in his voice.

'Hmm…Could it be an aftereffect of him using so much of Kyubi's chakra? It would coincide with what Shizune wrote in her report and from what I've heard about Kyubi's chakra.' She thought with her hand on her chin.

"I'm really sorry I didn't tell you…" Naruto apologized once more.

"It's alright Naruto-kun. I'm sorry I yelled at you. But you still should have told me about this instead of hiding it." She said with a sigh as she ruffled his hair. "Genma!" She shouted out.

"I'm here Hokage-sama." The jonin said as he appeared.

"Has Shizune returned from the hospital?" She asked.

"Yes Hokage-sama. She's sitting at her desk." He replied.

"Good. Send her in." The female sannin commanded. The toothpick carrying jonin nodded and disappeared. A minute later, her assistant came in.

"You called for me Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked hurriedly.

"Yes. I need you to take Naruto to the hospital for a full body analysis. I want all parts of him checked, including his chakra networks and tenketsu (Chakra points). Use a Hyuga medic if you need to." Tsunade ordered.

"Yes Tsunade-sama!" Shizune said.

"Is there something wrong with me Tsunade-baachan?" Naruto questioned with concern.

"Relax Naruto-kun. It's probably nothing, but better safe than sorry." The beautiful blond explained.

"And I just got out of the hospital too." Naruto pouted.

"Stop complaining. The quicker the tests are done, the sooner you can go home. Until then, you're still on medical leave, so **no training and no jutsus**. Just rest. **Got it brat**?" The female sannin said with a no-nonsense look on her face.

"Yeah, yeah. I got it." Naruto responded in defeat.

"Good. Now wait outside. I need to speak to Shizune for a moment." Tsunade requested. Naruto nodded and left the office. "Well Shizune, what were the results of Sakura's pregnancy test?" She asked quietly.

"The results were negative Tsunade-sama. Sakura's not pregnant." The med-nin replied with a smile.

'Finally! Some good news for a change.' The Godaime thought as she breathed a sigh of relief. "Good job Shizune. I need a full report on Naruto before the end of the day." She requested.

"You'll have it Tsunade-sama." She said.

"Alright. As you leave, tell Genma to summon an ANBU squad to my office right now." She requested. Shizune nodded and bowed before leaving. A few minutes later, the squad was there.

"You summoned us Hokage-sama?" The ANBU captain asked.

"Yes, I want you to find the sannin Jiraiya **immediately** and inform him that the Hokage requests his presence back in Konoha. This is an A-class emergency, so drag him back here if necessary." Tsunade ordered in a fierce voice.

"Yes Hokage-sama!" The squad said simultaneously as they disappeared in a swirl of leaves. A moment later, a secretary opened the door with a paper in her hand.

"I have a message from the Konoha lottery Hokage-sama. They said that you have won the weekly drawing and they want you to pick up your prize at tomorrow noon." The woman said. Tsunade instantly turned pale after hearing that she won.

"I see. Thank you for the message. Inform me when Shizune returns. Until then, I don't wish to be disturbed." The legendary sucker said quietly.

"Yes Hokage-sama." The secretary said as she left the room. The moment she did, the female sannin grabbed some sake from her stash, sat down and poured her a glass. As she picked up the glass, her hand started to shake. She knew something bad was coming.

"Oh Kami-sama…not now…" She said as she downed her favorite elixir and quickly poured another.

_Memorial Stone_

Meanwhile, at the stone where the fallen heroes of Konoha are laid to rest, Hatake Kakashi stands before it with his shoulders hunched in despair. Ever since Naruto gave him a piece of his mind over what happened over a week ago, he's taken some personal leave to think about what went wrong with everything. He's passed by Naruto on a few occasions since the blond left the hospital. But Naruto refuses to speak to him, let alone acknowledge him. So he's come here to the place where all of his excuses for being late were born to seek answers with someone else he failed a long time ago.

"Hello Obito. It's good to see you again. I guess you're wondering why I'm talking when all I do is stay silent when I come here. Well, since Naruto won't talk to me, Sakura is slowly recovering, and my fellow comrades have sort of ostracized me because of what happened with Sasuke, I decided to pay you a visit. So I'm just going to talk and I hope that you'll listen. Even though I know you won't answer me." Kakashi started as he took a deep breath and began to get some things off his chest.

"It was over a year ago when I met the only three who's ever passed my test. I'll never forget the first thing I said to them…"

"_**Hmm…How should I put this? My first impressions of you guys are…I hate you."**_

"It's funny how our own words can come back to haunt you. When Naruto said those words to me at the hospital, I really couldn't defend myself. He was right in everything he said. But what hurt me the most were the look in his eyes. Eyes full of disappointment. Eyes full of hate over what I did to him. I've seen those eyes once before. I had the same eyes the last time I spoke to my father."

"_**How could you bring shame to us father?! You were as great as the legendary sannin, and because you failed the mission, our family has become a laughing stock!" A young Kakashi shouted at his father.**_

"_**I'm sorry Kakashi. But I couldn't just let my comrades die. They were my friends. One day, you'll understand why I did what I did." Sakumo told his son as he placed a hand on his shoulder. But the young boy shrugged it away.**_

"_**No! I don't ever want to be like you! I hate you!" He yelled as he ran out of the room, causing his father to lower his head in shame.**_

"It was the next day that I found my father dead, killed by his own hand. I turned my back on him, just like everyone else. To this day, that vision still haunts me. But I did what I told him I was going to do. I didn't become like him. And since then, it cost me so much. Including you and Rin…."

"_**Rin, about Obito, I'm so…" Kakashi didn't get a chance to finish as she slapped him across the face and ripped off the medicine pouch she gave him for his promotion to jonin.**_

"_**Don't touch me Kakashi! It's because of you! It's because of you that Obito is…"Rin shouted hysterically.**_

"_**I'm sorry Rin." He said as he lowered his head in shame.**_

"_**I'm such a fool. All this time, I passed up someone who truly loved me. Someone who gave his life for me so many times. And because of it, I got a piece of trash who would've abandoned me without a second thought." She choked as she fell to her knees and started to cry while looking up at the starlit sky.**_

"_**Rin…I…"He reached out to comfort her, only to have his hand slapped away. She got up and looked at him with eyes full of anger and hate.**_

"_**I wish I never met you Kakashi! I'll never forgive you! I hate you!" The med-nin said in a cold voice as she ran to her sensei Minato's arms and started to cry in his chest. Kakashi turned away from her and headed back to the village alone.**_

"After that happened, I wanted to put in the things that you and sensei taught me. Everyone who was supposed to be on my team failed my test. But then those three came along and passed it. But despite this, even though they passed and learned the essence of teamwork, as a leader, a ninja and as a human, I failed all three of them…"

"_**Sakura! You obsessed about Sasuke who was gone. While Naruto was right in front of you and you wouldn't lift a finger to help him!"**_

"And yet I insisted on training Sasuke to the point that Sakura's growth suffered. And because of it, she nearly came close to death on a number of occasions. I knew she needed more help after what happened at the Forest of Death with Orochimaru and those sound ninjas, as well as her battle with Ino at the chunin exams. But I didn't lift a finger to help her, even when she was right in front of me…"

"_**Naruto! You do everything on your own! Everything!"**_

"I said that to him like I was so superior. And yet, when he needed my help the most, I turned my back on him…"

"_**I have other matters to handle. I don't have time to deal with you Naruto."**_

"I didn't even think about how that made him feel. When he accused me of training Sasuke, I didn't even try to deny it. And I patronized him by handing him off to Ebisu. A person I knew who hated him because of the Kyubi. He's been alone for almost all of his life, with no one who cared whether he lived or died. And I had to throw that in his face…"

"_**And you Sasuke thought the others were so far beneath you, they were worthless. Arrogance."**_

"I call him arrogant. And yet I gave him the tools to increase that arrogance I criticized him on. The tools that made him feel superior to everyone else. And I had no shame in saying that I did…"

"_**If you wondered why I always insisted on training Sasuke myself, now you know. It's because he's just like me…"**_

"I said it in front of my own students like an arrogant bastard. I gave him my most powerful technique to use at his disposal. A technique that kills. And yet when I found out Naruto learned the **Rasengan** (Spiraling Sphere), I had the gall to act superior. And to the teacher who taught the sensei who taught me…"

"_**I'm assuming that it was you who taught him that technique. Don't you think he's a little too young to be handling that jutsu? After all, he could've killed Sasuke."**_

"Who the hell was I to judge and belittle Naruto like that? What right did I have to criticize one of the legendary sannin?" He said bitterly as he formed a Rasengan in his hand before dissipating it. "Sensei taught me the technique around the same age as he did. And it took me over a year to learn it. If I hadn't, I would never have learned the **Chidori **(One thousand birds) and **Raikiri** (Lightning Blade). When Sasuke got that curse mark from Orochimaru, I didn't think or consider the physical or mental anguish that Naruto and Sakura went through when they fought him. I had the nerve to say that Naruto's basics were the worst when I handed him off to Ebisu. But what Jiraiya-sama told me after Sandaime-sama was buried and he told me about Akatsuki slapped me right across the face…"

"_**By the way Kakashi…"Jiraiya started to speak after he told him about Akatsuki.**_

"_**Hmm…? What is it Jiraiya-sama?" Kakashi asked.**_

"_**Did you know that Orochimaru gave Naruto a Gogyo Fuin (Five Elements Seal) where the Kyubi's seal was placed?" The toad sannin questioned. Kakashi's eyes widened in shock after it.**_

'_**He must've given that seal to Naruto when he fought him in the Forest of Death…' The copy ninja deduced. "No…I didn't…" He replied shamefully.**_

"_**I see…" Jiraiya said with an exasperated sigh.**_

"It was no wonder that Naruto couldn't even control his own chakra and use his jutsus properly. Not even the 'Elite Jonin' Ebisu noticed it. But even with a severe handicap, he still managed to defeat Kiba. But I guess it's to be expected. I've looked down on Naruto since day one. And he's always thrown it back in my face…"

"_**Class clowns are usually the weakest links. Lowest scores. Losers."**_

"But that 'loser' ended up saving us all when Zabuza had me dead to rights in his **Suiro no Jutsu **(Water Prison Technique). If it wasn't for his plan, the mission would have failed right then and there and we all would have lost our lives, whether they escaped with Tazuna-san or not…"

"_**Naruto's building a solid reputation as the most clueless ninja in history. The more he helps, the worst things get."**_

"Nevertheless, it was that 'clueless ninja' who defeated that boy Haku. An opponent that I not only said that Sasuke couldn't beat, but an opponent that came close to nearly killing him. Ironically, that helped me defeat Zabuza once more. And because of the words of that 'clueless ninja', it even made the Demon of the Mist shed tears for someone he used as nothing but a shield for most of his life. And that helped put an end to Gato's treachery once and for all, and possibly helped him join Haku in heaven. In the end, it was Naruto who truly saved the Land of Waves and brought the people together. Tazuna-san made a wise choice naming his bridge after him…"

"_**I never imagined there would be someone this powerful here. I'm afraid that even as strong as Sasuke is, he's no match for Neji…"**_

"Once again, it was Naruto that defeated another person that I said Sasuke couldn't beat. Despite the fact that Neji, the strongest genin on Guy's team, had more experience. Despite the fact I abandoned him and focused solely on Sasuke…"

"_**I know that you want to protect him from the Akatsuki. But still, to entrust him with a jutsu like that…"**_

"But if Jiraiya-sama didn't teach Naruto that jutsu, not only would we not have a Hokage, but Sasuke and I would be dead. Both of us trapped in Itachi's genjutsu world for all eternity. He saved her life, Sasuke's life and mine, just like last time, despite nearly dying himself. He brought Tsunade-sama back for Konoha and to save our lives. And he even defeated the one person I have yet to..."

"_**What is it Naruto?"**_

"_**Kakashi-sensei, you just have to stop this match right now!"**_

"_**What?"**_

"_**The guy Sasuke's fighting is completely different from the rest of us! He's about as far from normal as you can get."**_

"Naruto tried to warn me about Gaara. He was trying to help Sasuke. What he said next should have made me more aware…"

"_**He thinks his point in life is to kill people. Don't you see?! If this keeps up, Sasuke will die! You've got to believe me!"**_

"I should have believed him. After the battle, I found out that that sand ninja killed two grass chunins right in front of Naruto and Shikamaru. They came very close to being killed as well. I also found out what he nearly did to Lee at the hospital from Guy. And what was my response to his warning…?"

"_**Oh come on, will you please do something! This is no time for talking!"**_

"_**You're right, so shut up and watch!"**_

"I knew something was wrong to begin with when I saw the lack of ANBU black ops at the stadium. I knew how dangerous Gaara was when he nearly killed Lee. Naruto tried to tell me what was about to come. And all I did was ignore it all. But when the attack happened, I sent the two people on my team, the people I neglected after him in order to get the person I so proudly praised. And it was Naruto, the one I put down, the one I ignored, the one I called an idiot and a loser, that saved them both from someone who, like he said, could've destroyed the village with a single stroke. And he did it with his own strength. Just like it was your strength that saved Rin and me. The same strength that helped me become the so-called Copy Ninja. Strength that I'm not worthy of…" Kakashi choked as he lifted up his headband while tears poured out of his eyes like a raging river.

"_**The people in the village…what they must have been saying…that you're a great jonin…that's how I feel."**_

"Obito…my friend. Why did you give this eye to me? I don't deserve it. Even now, I haven't lived up to those kind words you said to me as you laid dying. And the words that you taught me. The words that I'm supposed to live by…"

"_**Those who break the rules and regulations are called trash. But those who don't care about their companions are even worse than trash."**_

"I've been trying so hard to be like you since that day. And yet, I haven't changed at all. Naruto is more like you than I ever will be. I once told someone that you live in the eye that you gave to me. But when Naruto yelled at me that day, I felt that you were yelling at me as well…"

"_**Hmmph…well after what happened to that perverted teme, you'd be mourning over his grave and ignoring Sakura and me like you always do. After all, you said he was just like you, right Kakashi-sensei."**_

"Naruto was right. I am just like Sasuke. An arrogant…"

"_**If you wondered why I always insisted on training Sasuke myself, now you know. It's because he's **__just like me…__**"**_

"…perverted…" He takes out his Icha Icha Paradise book and throws it to the ground in disgust.

"_Just like me…"_

"_**But it can't be Hokage-sama! Sasuke wouldn't do such a thing! I spoke to him before I left. I trained him myself. There must be some mistake!"**_

"_**Silence Kakashi! Whether you want to believe it or not, Uchiha Sasuke raped Haruno Sakura. He betrayed the village and was heading to Orochimaru. And he was killed by Uzumaki Naruto. I don't know what those old bastards at the council will say. But I say good riddance."**_

"…blind…"

"_Just like me…"_

"_**I see in your eyes, you know what loneliness is…true loneliness. You understand that it is the most painful form of suffering that there is in this world. Eyes with a hunger for power…full of hate, the same as me. Eyes that seek revenge against those that made you so lonely. Eyes that burn to see them all dead. It's all in your eyes."**_

"_**Your name is Gaara right? Seems you can read a lot in Sasuke's eyes. Be careful, you may not be able to read them as well as you think."**_

"…hypocritical…"

"_Just like me…"_

"_**It's true that ninjas need well-developed individual abilities, but it's teamwork that is much more important. Every shinobi understands this. When individuals put themselves above the squad, this can lead to failure and death."**_

"_**If you were a real leader, you would have told me the truth and we all would have dealt with it as a team, which you drilled into our heads during that test."**_

"…bastard." He finished as he fell to his knees.

"_Just like me…"_

"_**I'm sorry…"**_

"_**It's too late for apologies Kakashi-sensei. But what else is new."**_

"I'm called a genius. I have nicknames like Copy-ninja Kakashi and Kakashi of the Sharingan. I'm known as the ninja who cut a lightning bolt with the jutsu I was so damn proud of making. And yet, everyone around me suffers from my sins. I told them when I met them that they didn't know what it meant to be a ninja. But in truth, I don't know what it means to be a human. They passed my test, but I'm the one who failed them. I failed them all. Just like father. Just like Rin. Just like Minato-sensei. And just like you Obito. I have no one to blame but myself. I'm so sorry for all that I've done. I still don't know…what kind of commander…what kind of jonin…what kind of ninja…and what kind of human I am…" He sobbed as the steel aura that made him known and feared throughout the five great nations broke at the memorial stone where he comes almost every day. He bowed low to the ground at the stone, as if asking his lost comrades and the comrades beside him for forgiveness. A man who was considered the perfect ninja released all of his pain, his sadness, his failures, and his sins for the first time in years.

_Konoha_

Elsewhere, Sakura walked slowly back home after taking the pregnancy test. She was greatly relieved that she wasn't pregnant, but her mind continued to drift towards the blond ninja.

'It's funny. For so long, I've ignored Naruto. Now I can't stop thinking about him.' Sakura thought as some young guys around her age passed her by. Trying not to look too frightened, she turned her head and edged herself away from them carefully by moving to the farthest side of the street. 'What's happened to me? I used to be so confident, saying I was strong, as well as beautiful. But I've become nothing but a thoroughwort because of my actions. Sasuke was right about me. I'm nothing but a stupid and selfish bitch that pissed on everyone else except him. My younger self would be so ashamed of me if she saw me now.' She said in her mind as she subconsciously wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her shoulders while tears stung her eyes. 'I wish Ino were here. But she's on a mission with her team. Maybe I should go see Naruto. I never did get the chance to thank him for what he did for me and my Mom. I can't just avoid him forever…' She concluded. And with that she turned towards the direction of his apartment.

Once she reaches it, she knocks on his door and calls out to him. But there's no response. 'Hmm…I guess he's still with Hokage-sama.' She deduced and started to head home.

"I'm home Mom!" Sakura called out when she closed the door.

"I'm upstairs Sakura!" Mrs. Haruno shouted. The pink haired girl went upstairs and found her mother in her room looking at a white jacket with a red flame design on the back that had kanji on it that said 'Fighting Spirit'.

"What are you doing in my room Mom?" The young woman asked curiously.

"I was just cleaning it up. When I saw the jacket, it made me think about the past…" The elder Haruno said with a bit of sadness in her voice. Sakura tilted her head slightly, but said nothing as she sat down on her bed. "So what did the Hokage want to talk to you about?" She asked as she sat down on the bed with her daughter. Sakura bit her lip, and lowered her head. She knew she needed to be honest with her mother.

"Well you see…" Sakura said as she started to talk about her meeting with the Hokage, as well as everything else in general.

_Thirty minutes later_

"Oh Sakura…" Mrs. Haruno said as she held her daughter and stroked her hair while she cried in her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry Mom. I'm so ashamed over what I done. To Naruto. To the village. And to you…" Sakura sniffed as she looked up at her.

"It's alright my cherry blossom. I forgive you. I know that everything looks bad, but I'm sure that everything will work out and they'll give you a second chance. I'm just glad that you're not pregnant." Her mother said comfortingly as she wiped her little girl's face. Sakura gave her a weak smile and increased her embrace on the grown woman.

'Oh Kami-sama. Why did I let my sins of the past corrupt my little flower?' Mrs. Haruno said shamefully as she wiped her face from the tears that were coming.

"What are you thinking about Mom?" The pink headed girl asked as she looked at her face with concern. Her mother closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.

"Sakura…Ever since this happened to you, I've been thinking a lot lately. I almost lost you to that Uchiha boy. And I owe Naruto a debt I can never repay for saving you so many times, especially after what happened. I feel that the time has come to tell you something I've been hiding from you, and from my own heart since before you were born. And when you find out the truth, I'll understand if you never forgive me." Mrs. Haruno said seriously with a heavy heart.

"What do you want to tell me?" Sakura inquired as she pulled back and sat straight on her bed. She never had seen her mother look so serious and so scared before. And in truth, it scared her as well.

"Come with me…" She replied as she got off the bed and reached out her hand to her daughter. Sakura took it and followed her into her mother's room. Her mother told her to sit on the bed and she complied. The elder woman then went inside her large closet and pulled out a medium sized hope chest with a seal on it, laying it on the bed. She sat next to Sakura and made a hand seal saying "Kai (Release)!" and the seal burned off. She opened the chest and pulled out a decorated scroll with a Haruno crest seal that was right next to an old photo album.

"What's all of this Mom?" Sakura asked finally.

"This Sakura…is my greatest sin. A sin that I have passed onto you." She said cryptically.

"I don't understand." The young woman said in complete befuddlement.

"Have you ever wondered why you hate Naruto?" Her mother asked her. Sakura gasped and turned away from her, lowering her head. The parent gently put her hand on her chin and moved her daughter's head to look at her while shaking her head. "It's alright Sakura. You don't need to say anything. I already know the answer, because I'm to blame for it. I implanted my hate into you." She said.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, more confused than ever.

"Take a look at this picture…" Mrs. Haruno replied as she opened up the photo album and showed an old picture to her daughter. Sakura's eyes widened in shock and disbelief as she sees a picture of both of her parents, the Yondaime Hokage and his wife Kushina in a hospital room as her mother lies in a bed holding an infant with a patch of pink hair in her arms.

"Is that baby me?" Sakura asked with a smile.

"Yes it is. Your father and I were very close to the Yondaime Hokage Minato and his wife Kushina. In fact, if it wasn't for the two of them, neither of us would be alive." Her mother replied honestly.

"Really?" The young girl asked.

"Yes. About a year before you were born, when your father and I were ninjas, we were ambushed by some Iwa ninjas who wiped out our units until only the two of us were left. Minato and Kushina found us on the brink of death; he used his great speed to not only defeat those enemy ninjas, but to get us back to Konoha so we could go to the hospital. Thanks to him and Kushina's medical treatment when they found us, they saved our lives. We were friends ever since…" She replied with nostalgia.

"So that jacket in my room…?" Sakura began to ask.

"Yes. It was the Yondaime who gave it to our family as a gift." She replied Taking a deep breath, she continued to tell her story.

"When the time came and we were blessed with you, we sort of had trouble coming up with a name for you. In the end, it was Minato who named you Sakura because he mentioned that your pink hair reminded him of cherry blossoms, which is his favorite tree. We were still indebted to him, so we allowed him to bless you with the name you have now." She said truthfully.

"The Yondaime Hokage gave me my name?" Sakura asked incredulously.

"Yes. But that's not all that happened that day. We were so grateful to them for everything they done for us, that we made an oath between our families. You see, when you were born, Kushina was pregnant. And the four of us agreed that when her child was born, if it was a boy, we would unite our clans together into one in an arranged marriage when our children came of age. Since you officially become adults in Konoha when you graduate the academy and become a ninja, it would be around that time…" She explained to her daughter with pain etched in her voice. Sakura's body became deathly cold after hearing this startling revelation.

"Did…did they have a child?" The young woman questioned nervously.

"Yes…They had a son…And he lives here in this village." The elder Haruno answered honestly while lowering her head.

'I…I can't believe it. I'm…engaged to the Yondaime's son…' Sakura thought as she picked up her jaw off the floor, in a manner of speaking. "Wait a minute Mom. What does this have to do with Naruto and how you passed your sin onto me?" She inquired after composing herself. Her mother sighed deeply as tears started to fall from her eyes.

"Sakura…I risk breaking one of the village's laws by telling you what I'm about to say. You must not repeat this to **no one** unless the Hokage or I give you permission. Do you understand?" Mrs. Haruno requested in a serious voice.

"Y-Yes Mom, I won't tell anyone. I promise." She vowed with a nod. Her mother nodded back and began to speak as her tears continued to fall on the bed.

"Do you remember me telling you about how your father died from fighting the Kyubi?" She asked.

"Yes, I remember. You told me that on October tenth, the Yondaime destroyed the Kyubi and saved the village. I even heard about it in school." Her daughter replied.

"Well, that's only partially true." The elder woman said.

"What?" Sakura gasped.

"The Kyubi wasn't destroyed. The Yondaime sealed it inside a baby, using a jutsu that cost him his life." Mrs. Haruno explained.

"Who was the baby?" The young woman questioned in anticipation.

"The baby was his own son…" Mrs. Haruno replied bluntly.

'How sad…' Sakura thought as she covered her mouth in disbelief. She remained silent as her mother continued telling her tragic tale.

"After that battle, the Yondaime's last decree was that the child be treated as a hero. But most of the villagers considered the baby as the demon, despite them knowing the truth. I…was one of those people…" She said disgracefully.

"Mom…" Sakura said somberly.

"I…I know now that I shouldn't…have done that to the son of the man who's done so much for our family. The boy…who is supposed to be your fiancé. But I was consumed with anger and grief over the lost of your father. And I did something unforgivable to that child. Something that I now deeply regret…" She sobbed as her mind went back to that night in a forgotten alley that she and a mob of villagers committed a great sin against the hero of Konoha.

_Flashback- About eight years ago_

"_Hold him down." Mrs. Haruno said to a couple of strong men in the mob. The men do as they are told as they grab and hold down the arms of a scared, five year old Naruto who had frightened tears falling from his eyes._

"_I…I'm s-sorry. P-Please don't h-hurt m-me. I-I'll be a g-good b-boy…" The young child stammered in fear. But it fell on deaf ears as the cries of 'Kill the demon!' were heard from the mob._

"_Silence demon! You killed my husband, you monster! And now I'm going to kill you. But first, you must suffer as we have suffered at your hands." She said as she started to make hand seals until her hands turned a deep blue. With her chakra scalpels now powerful enough to cut outer flesh as well as inner flesh, she pointed her finger and let her nail dig deep into Naruto's face and slashed it. The only thing heard besides the hateful chants was the young boy screaming in terrible agony as she did it five more times._

_End Flashback_

"Oh Kami. Mom…**How could you do such a thing**?!" Sakura shouted in utter horror and anger at what her mother did.

"I know. What I did to him that night…I don't deserve forgiveness for it. I did it with every intention to make him suffer and take his life that night. I gave him six scars across his face and was about to go in for the kill, when ANBU guards spotted us and arrested me and the mob. Most of them were sent to prison, but because of my status as head of the Haruno Clan and a member of the council, I was spared a prison sentence for the assault, thanks to certain friends on the council. But because of my crimes, the Sandaime Hokage permanently stripped me of my status as a ninja and council member, because the scars I gave the boy when I used my jutsu on him were so deep, they became permanent. The case was then permanently sealed, and I was told if I ever caused him any harm again, I would be executed. Knowing that I couldn't go after him again, I told you to stay away from that boy and to never interact with him ever since you were a child. Thus transferring my hatred of him to you." She finished shamefully as she covered her face and began to sob loudly.

It was then that a light in Sakura's head went off, as she recalled her mother pulling her away from a boy when she was a little girl, hearing her say to stay away from him and that he was a monster. She covered her mouth in astonishment and looked at the still sealed scroll. She broke the seal and read the parchment for the arranged marriage between her and the son of the Yondaime. The document was authentic and official, which contained the blood mark and signatures of the parents as well as their clan markings. When she saw the full names of Minato and Kushina, The scroll fell out of her hands and she started to cry once more.

"Uzumaki…Uzumaki Kushina. She is…" Sakura said in realization as everything fell into place.

"Yes. The one you are arranged to marry, the one who I committed my sin against, the sin which I passed onto you, is Uzumaki Naruto, the son of Uzumaki Kushina and the Yondaime Hokage Namikaze Minato…" Mrs. Haruno confirmed. Sakura was completely devastated after hearing the dirty secret and shame of her family. And it made her personal sins against the blond feel unbearably heavier. It was truly too much for her tiny shoulders to bear as she slowly got up off the bed and turned away from her mother. "Sakura…I…" Her mother got up and reached out to touch her, only to have her hand slapped away.

"**DON'T TOUCH ME…!**" Sakura shouted in a hard voice with her back still turned away while choking back a sob.

"I'm sorry Sakura. I only kept this from you to protect you!" Her mother said sadly.

"**DON'T LIE TO ME…!" **The young woman countered, making the woman who gave her life flinch back. "You didn't do this for me, you did this for yourself! Naruto…his family, they've done so much for us. **Our family wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for them**! But you…no, **WE** both betrayed them and **we** didn't care how much pain we caused them! **The both of us, we were nothing but selfish, heartless bitches** **to them when they've treated us with nothing but kindness**! And there's nothing, **NOTHING** we can do to take back what the both of us have done!" Sakura screamed at the top of her lungs.

Her mother lowered her head and looked at the floor, knowing that her young daughter was right in everything she said. Sakura turned around and looked at her mother. Mrs. Haruno sensed this and lifted her head. What she saw would burn into her memory forever. Her young daughter's eyes were a tear stained red that almost blocked out her emerald pools, while the girl stared at her with a combination of hatred, rage and pure disgust plastered on her face.

"You ruined my life Mom. **I HATE YOU!!**" Sakura bellowed with pure venom as she ran out the room and into hers.

"Sakura!" She shouted as she ran after her, only to have her daughter slam and lock her door in her face. A moment later, she could hear her daughter cry the loudest she's ever cried in her life. Mrs. Haruno didn't even try to knock on her door, knowing that she wouldn't open it. She leaned her back on it and slid down to the floor as she covered her face and started to cry as well. It was at that moment she knew that even though her and her daughter were only separated by a simple door, they were now worlds apart. And she had only to look in the mirror to know the cause.

_Konoha Hospital- Two hours later_

Time passed by slowly as Tsunade headed to the hospital to see if Shizune was ready with her report on Naruto's health. A number of thoughts flowed through her mind, but what worried her most was the bad feeling that sprung when she found out about winning the lottery. For when it came to winning anything in her favorite pastime, it wouldn't make her feel like a winner later. She went inside Shizune's hospital office where her assistant along with the sannin's pet pig Tonton, were sitting quietly.

"Hey Shizune." Tsunade called out to her softly.

"Oh…Tsunade-sama…" Shizune said quietly as she looked at her master.

"Are you alright Shizune? You look like you were just crying not too long ago." The female asked with concern.

"Y-Yes, I'm fine. Sorry Tsunade-sama." The med-nin responded as she wiped her face. The legendary sucker knew she was lying, but she didn't press it since there were more pressing matters to deal with.

"Do you have the results of Naruto's full body analysis?" The beautiful blond inquired.

"Yes Tsunade-sama. Here it is." She answered sadly as she handed her a file that was in front of her. Tsunade began to read thoroughly. As she turned each page, her strong façade began to crumble piece by piece.

'Oh Kami-sama…no wonder Shizune was…Naruto…' Tsunade thought as she felt a hole in her heart that she thought was sealed begin to reopen. "Shizune…is all of this…correct?" She could barely get out as her voice started to break.

"Yes…" Shizune replied joylessly.

"Did you tell Naruto?" She asked cryptically.

"No. After the test, I sent him home." The med-nin answered.

"Good. Please don't tell anyone about this." The Godaime ordered.

"Yes Tsunade-sama. But is there anything you can do?" Shizune asked with hope. Tsunade turned towards the door with the file in her hand and opened it while lowering her head sadly.

"I…don't know Shizune. For the first time in a long time, I honestly don't know…" She replied with her voice barely above a whisper as she closed the door quietly.

"Naruto-kun…" Shizune choked as she laid her head on her desk and cried softly. Tonton let out a soft oink and lowered his head with a frown on his face.

_Hokage Tower- Ten minutes later_

As she walked into the tower back to her office, she carried a grave look on her face. When she reached her floor, the same secretary who told her about the lottery winnings earlier today approached her.

"Excuse me, Hokage-sama." The polite secretary said.

"What is it?" Tsunade asked with a bit of annoyance.

"I just wanted to inform you that the ANBU guard you sent to retrieve Jiraiya-sama has returned. They are currently waiting for you in your office." She replied.

"I see…Thank you. That will be all for today. Take the rest of the day off." The female sannin said with a somewhat forced smile.

"Yes Hokage-sama. Thank you very much!" The secretary said happily. The Godaime just waved her hand to send her on her way. The woman bowed and went back to her desk. She opened the doors to her office and saw her ANBU guard surrounding the toad sage as he sat in a chair.

"Hey Tsunade! You must've really missed me." Jiraiya said with a smile on his face. Tsunade didn't even glance at him as she looked at the ANBU captain.

"Thank you for bringing him so quickly everyone." Tsunade said to the guards.

"It wasn't very difficult Hokage-sama. He was peeping on women in the bathhouse." A female ANBU guard said with a hint of disgust.

"I see…" She growled which caused the super pervert to gulp nervously. "Good work. All of you are dismissed. Tell the guards to stand at my door and to not let anyone enter except for Shizune, and not to come in, no matter what they hear." She said in a commanding voice.

"Yes Hokage-sama!" The ANBU guards said all at once as they disappeared in a swirl of leaves. A minute later, the Godaime Hokage put the file she was carrying down and pulled down the shades for privacy.

"Wow Tsunade. I never thought this day would come…" Jiraiya said in a flirtatious voice as he stood up and walked to her.

"Neither did I. But you definitely deserve it." She said with her eyes closed. A moment later, Tsunade clenches her fist and gives her former teammate a powerful punch in the ribs, following up with a slap to his face which not only rattled his jaw, but threw him to the floor. "You stupid, lazy, perverted bastard. **What in the name of Kami were you thinking?!?**" Tsunade shouted as she took off her jacket and tossed it in her chair, cracking her knuckles a minute later.

"Whoa, Whoa! Wait a minute Tsunade! What did I do?" He asked with wide eyes as he slowly got up and put a hand in front of his face while holding his now bruised ribs with the other.

"Don't act stupid! Naruto told me everything!" The female sannin replied as she stood over him.

"W-what did he tell you?" The toad sage asked nervously.

"Are you deaf? **I SAID EVERYTHING!**" She yelled in his face, making him move back in fear. "Making him transform into a woman so that you could train him. Spending most of that time looking at women and not helping him train like you promised. Spending all of his hard earned mission money on women!" Tsunade started counting on her fingers while a vein pulsed on her forehead.

"W-wait Tsunade. I-I can explain…" Jiraiya mumbled nervously as he started to sweat. But she just ignored him and continued.

"Abandoning him to look at women when he summons that stubborn toad Gamabunta, a stupid thing which nearly killed him! Leaving him alone in a room to go out on a date with another damn woman. Another stupid ass thing that nearly got him captured by Akatsuki! And the worst of them all, YOU KNOCK HIM OUT AND TOSS HIM DOWN THE DEEPEST CLIFF IN FIRE COUNTRY SO HE CAN SUMMON THE CHAKRA OF THE MOST POWERFUL BIJU (Tailed Beast) IN EXISTENCE!! **A BEAST THAT NEARLY DESTROYED THIS VILLAGE AND CAUSED THE DEATH OF YOUR STUDENT!!**" The female sannin roared as she punched him into a wall with her monstrous strength. Tsunade lowered her head and breathed deeply as the toad sage got up a lot slower than when she slapped him, and rubbed his aching jaw.

'Damn. I've never seen Tsunade so angry at me before.' The sannin thought to himself as he began to speak, making sure to choose his words carefully. "Tsunade…I know that my training techniques are a little…unorthodox. But you got to admit, with him being able to access the Kyubi's chakra; he'll become much more powerful." He explained in an even voice. The Godaime raised her head and the pervert gasped in astonishment as tears were falling from her eyes.

"You're wrong Jiraiya. That damn fox's chakra is going to cause his death…" Tsunade said dismally.

"What are you talking about?" The toad sage asked in confusion. The legendary sucker turned to her desk and tossed Naruto's file at him and asked him to read it.

"Did you hear what happened here over a week ago?" She asked him.

"Yeah. That Uchiha bastard raped that pink haired teammate of Naruto's and that Naruto killed him and Orochimaru's body guards, the Sound Four." He replied proudly, showing off his information gathering skills.

"Don't sound so damn proud! He used the Kyubi's chakra to do it. And because of your incompetence, it did more harm than good!" She yelled at him as she started to cry harder.

"What do you mean?" The toad sage asked in confusion.

"When Naruto found out the truth about what happened to Sakura, he went to that damn fox and asked him for his chakra to go after Sasuke. That damn beast gave him enough to access up to four tails, which nearly kill me when he attacked me!" Tsunade started to explain.

"What?!" Jiraiya said in disbelief.

"I'm not done. According to Shizune's report, when she saw Naruto heading in the direction of the five of them, she said that instead of four, he had **six tails** on him!" The female sannin continued.

"SIX TAILS?!" The sannin shouted.

"Interrupt me again, and I'll do more than bruise your ribs." The Godaime threatened which quickly shut him up. "After we retrieved what was left of the bodies, we also took the remains of the coffin that Sasuke was in. We found residue of what appears to be some sort of chemical that I suspect was created by Orochimaru for some purpose. Possibly to increase the strength of Sasuke's curse seal. In any case, while Naruto was out of control, he broke open the coffin and was exposed to all of those chemicals, which entered his system and combined with the elements of Kyubi's chakra. I believe it returned Naruto to normal after he killed Sasuke. When he was brought back, I checked and there were no serious injuries at first. But a couple of days ago, he started coughing up blood, so I sent him to the hospital for a full body analysis. The results I got are in that folder." She finally finished. Jiraiya read the rest of the file quietly. When he got to the end, his face became as pale as a sheet.

"No…This can't be." Jiraiya said in horror.

"It is. When I came back here and became Hokage, I did some research on the Kyubi's chakra, just in case, for Naruto's sake. As powerful as the chakra is, his body is just a skeleton for it. It's protects him, but it also harms him as well. And if he accesses too much of it, it could burn off his skin and make him bleed from every one of his pores. But since the fox gives him the power of regeneration, combined with all that power, it would make his ability to destroy and create new cells nearly three times faster than my **Sozo Saisei **(Creation Rebirth)." She said honestly.

"And that would greatly shorten his lifespan. Especially since he's so young." The toad sage deduced.

"That's right. And because of that and his exposure to those damn chemicals in that coffin, it has severely weakened his entire body! His immune system, his chakra network, his vitals, all of them has been damaged to such a great level, that the negative effects are irreversible! Not even modern medicine will be able to heal it…" Tsunade said flatly with a sob. Jiraiya dropped the file onto the floor. He still couldn't believe what he just heard. He dashed to his former teammate and firmly put his hands on her shoulders.

"This…This can't be true! There has to be something, anything you can do for Naruto. You're the queen of slugs and elixirs! You can heal anything! You were able to save that Lee kid! You can save Naruto!" Jiraiya said almost hysterically as he started to shake Tsunade desperately. The sannin slapped him hard across the face. But even though she didn't add any strength to it, to Jiraiya, it hurt more than what she hit him with so far.

"THIS IS DIFFERENT FROM LEE! This isn't just a simple body part; it's his entire system and everything in it! I may be a sannin and the Godaime Hokage, **but I'm not Kami himself**! There's nothing I can do for him. The damage done to him won't prevent him from leading a normal life. But he can **never** be a ninja again. And if he **ever** uses Kyubi's chakra again, his chakra network will burst apart and he will die…" Tsunade said, telling him the god honest truth. The toad sage could do nothing but lower his head in disgrace. "After everything he did for me, I never thought that his dream, the dream my brother, my love, my granduncle and my grandfather all died for, would be destroyed. Especially by you, of all people…" She said with sorrow and hatred in her voice.

"Tsunade…I…you know that I…I didn't mean to…" The toad sage choked as the normally cool customer started to shed tears of his own. He tries to walk up to Tsunade and tries to comfort her. But she only rewards him with a final punch for his effort, which knocks him to the floor.

"You know…Naruto told me that you said that he didn't have the right to face Akatsuki after they nearly captured him, due to **your** stupidity. But you know what? You don't have the right to call yourself a sannin, or a godfather to the child you named." She said with the utmost spite as she looks at her comrade with rage and disgust.

"Tsunade…" He said in a small voice. She doesn't even acknowledge him as she turns her back on him.

"You're a disgrace to your student, his wife, his son who saved our village and all the ninjas of Konoha now and who came before you. On my authority as the Godaime Hokage, I strip you of your benefits as a sannin and you're forbidden to leave Konoha until further notice. Go ahead and enjoy and your goddamn 'research' for your perverted crap you call literature. Do your stupid ass little kabuki dance whenever someone asks you your name. Do whatever the hell you want! And know that you destroyed the dreams of Minato's legacy…" Tsunade told him angrily as she called for the guards who quickly came inside. "Get Jiraiya-**sama **out of my sight. Get him a room at the guest hotel. I also want an ANBU guard on him twenty four hours a day." She ordered.

"Understood Hokage-sama." The guards said to her at the same time.

"Wait Tsunade! Let me at least speak to Naruto." The toad sage requested.

"Request denied. You are getting nowhere near Naruto again. Stay the hell away from him! If you come near him, try to speak to him, or try to leave this village, **I will gladly throw away everything and kill you!**" Tsunade warned in her hardest voice. The toad sage gasped and knew that she was deadly serious. He lowered his head and said no more as the guards escorted him out of her office. After the doors were closed, the Godaime Hokage picked up Naruto's folder and placed it on her desk. She then sat in her chair and wiped the last of her tears from her eyes. Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, she opened her shades and looked out towards the village as the sun started to go down.

"Minato, Kushina…why is the world and the people in it cursing this boy? This boy who's done nothing but try to live his life as a normal human being? How am I going to tell your son, the hero of this village, my savior who put me in this chair that his dream is over? How…?" The beautiful blond said out loud as she looked to the heavens for guidance. But the heavens did not answer her questions. The only response she got was the sky being covered by dark clouds, which lead to a heavy storm an hour later. A storm that seemed like the heavens were weeping, trying to wash away the revelation of so many people's sins.

Author's Notes 2: Hmm…Well this was definitely a sad ass chapter (This is an Angst story and I did warn you in the beginning.). Sorry if this chapter was so depressing and Naruto and company got all weepy :(. But even the strongest people cry. And after all that's been revealed this chapter, it was necessary (Even Kakashi.). In any case, now that this chapter is done, as I promised, the next one will be much, much lighter. How will Naruto react to the news of his condition? What will Sakura do now that she knows that she's technically Naruto's fiancé? And what will be Tsunade's decision on her fate as a ninja? What will the now disgraced Jiraiya and Kakashi do now? Stay tuned. Just remember that it's always darkest before the dawn. It will get better, trust me ;).

In the meantime, you guys and gals know what to do. Read, Enjoy (As best as you can.) and Review. As always, your thoughts and feelings are always important. And like Kurorasen, **ALL SUGGESTIONS ARE WELCOME.** Like I said before, I'm still on temporary hiatus. But while I'm away, I'll try to come up with new chapters of your favorite stories. I may even bring out a new one if it comes into my head. Until next time, my loyal fans, authors, readers and friends, thanks for all of your support and may this year be much better than the last for you and yours. Later for now :)!


	3. Special Author's Note and Apology

How can you mend a broken heart? By Mr. Lee

Disclaimer: This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only. The author of this fanfiction does not own Naruto or its characters. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Any other similarities in this story are purely coincidental.

Special Author's Note and Apology: Hello my fans, authors, readers and dear friends, this is Mr. Lee. Due to the recent reviews I've been receiving for the content in chapter two, I'm leaving this special author's note to clear the air once and for all.

Let me make it **abundantly clear** that I have nothing personal against Kakashi or Jiraiya. They are both great characters in Naruto and I truly do like them. However, for the sake of the story and the plot, which deals with the serious subject of rape and the affect it has on people, it was necessary for me to put them in that light. I have read all of your reviews, and I mostly agree with what you are all saying. But I did mention in my past author notes and in my warning that the content in the story does not reflect my personal views and beliefs, that there would be serious angst, that it would be controversial, and that certain characters would be OOC. In addition, I was asked by a number of you to put a little more angst in the next chapter if I chose to continue it. And I did just that. Most of you understood what I was trying to accomplish in chapter 2, and for that I thank you and for your kind reviews. But unfortunately, it seems that I may have added a bit too much for certain readers and it rubbed them the wrong way, despite the fact that it wasn't my intention. And for that, **I am deeply and sincerely sorry** :(. So let me explain so that there is no confusion or misunderstandings.

In regards to Kakashi, what Naruto said to him in chapter one has made him feel immense guilt over what happened, since he spent the most time with Sasuke and he felt responsible for him. Just like he felt responsible for Obito's death, and in this story, what he said to his father and Rin. In Rin's case, in Kakashi Gaiden, after Obito died and Kakashi told Rin that he would protect her, Rin asked him about her feelings for him. Kakashi said, and I quote, 'I…I was once the kind of trash that would abandon you…'. Combined with the fact that Rin had a sad expression on her face as she looked at the heavens after they were rescued by the Yondaime gave me the inspiration for that scene. The same goes for what he said at the end, since he said, and again I quote, 'What kind of commander, what kind of jonin am I?' when Obito was injured. Also, the majority of the words I used in his segment came right from the anime and manga. And I decided to add my own twist to this as well since we are dealing with someone who at this time has a guilty conscience. As strong as the Copy ninja is, guilt is something that's a constant companion to him (The fact that he apologized to an unconscious Naruto after his fight with Sasuke after the battle at the Valley of the End is proof of this.). I didn't add those scenes to bash him, since as I said, I like Kakashi. But for a story such as this and the events that were involved, it was necessary for the plot. Besides, like Tsunade said after Naruto's rant, he wasn't himself. And that incident will be focused upon in the next chapter.

As for Jiraiya, his scene with Tsunade is where I got the most flak from. Once again, let me make it clear that I like Jiraiya, and I was deeply saddened by his death when he lost to Pein (May Ero-sennin rest in peace.). But like Kakashi, for the story and its plot, again, it was necessary. Despite the toad sage's popularity, due to recent things that have been revealed by Kishimoto about the super pervert (The fact that he's Naruto's godfather and that he named him is an example.), the popularity of Shippuden and of Jiraiya himself has recently taken a serious drop from fans because of how his character was handled (From the fact that he didn't even recognize Naruto when he first appeared to the way he died are just some examples.). Since most fics always show Jiraiya in a positive light and since my story is an angst story and it was necessary for the plot, I decided to take a different course. Again, I wasn't trying to bash him. It was just necessary for the story. Why? Look at it from this point of view.

As we all know, of all of Naruto's precious people, Tsunade could easily be put in Naruto's top 5. In addition, as it has been revealed in the manga by Jiraiya himself, despite the fact that their former teammates, him and Tsunade weren't really that close since she never gave him the time of day (When he revealed this, you saw him being hit with an uppercut by the beautiful blond.). So it would be easily understandable if she cared more about Naruto than Jiraiya since she sees Naruto as family and puts him on the same level as Nawaki and Dan. After all, like Naruto, she came very close to killing Jiraiya when she broke nearly every bone in his body when he peeped on her while they were young (A fact that once again, Jiraiya admitted to in the manga.).

Now put yourself in Tsunade's shoes. Imagine you were a parent or a boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse, and you discovered that your child or someone you loved was inflicted with a permanent injury. And the person that you felt was responsible for their safety didn't prevent it from happening. You'd be naturally upset and angry at that person, despite the fact that that person may not have been directly involved. As humans, we are all guilty of saying and doing things to others in the heat of anger. Myself included. Tsunade was no exception. After all, she does have a fiery temper when she's angry. And it reared its ugly head in the last chapter. In the heat of anger, all logic goes out the window, leaving only our raw emotions like hate and anger. And in letting out those raw emotions, there will indeed be consequences. Just like the villagers hate Naruto because they feel he's the demon when it's most likely they know the truth, Tsunade was upset and angry at Jiraiya in the exact same way.

This goes back to Kakashi and his reasons for feeling guilt over Sasuke. Naruto spent the most time with Jiraiya, and as such, as his sensei, and on a lesser note, a member of Naruto's family, his godfather, that would make him responsible. In the beginning of the chapter, if it was just the fact of Jiraiya's unorthodox training of the blond, Tsunade would have just scolded him for it, since his training would be considered by more traditional teachers, reckless and immature. But now that the fact that Naruto's current condition was mainly due to Kyubi's chakra and Jiraiya was responsible for helping Naruto unlock it and use it as a weapon (A fact that Jiraiya apologized to the Yondaime for in the first part of the series when he knocked him out and he tossed him over that cliff.), regardless of the fact that Naruto is mostly to blame for going to the fox and giving into his rage in the first place, Tsunade felt, in her throes of anger and for her love of her precious person that she considers family, that Jiraiya was mostly to blame for the incident, which led to what happened. Just like a guardian or a parent would be blamed for what their child does to someone else. It's only natural. Illogical, but natural.

Besides, we have all witnessed that the fact of Jiraiya helping Naruto unlock Kyubi's chakra in the first part of the series has had repercussions on the blond and those around him in Shippuden. The fact that Jiraiya was nearly killed and Sakura was badly injured by it is proof of this. This led Kakashi, Yamato and Jiraiya himself to tell Naruto **not** to use Kyubi's chakra, to have seals to suppress that chakra (One of which Jiraiya created himself because of the near death experience.), and to help Naruto use his shadow clones better and to create the Futon: Rasengan (Wind Release: Spiraling Sphere) and the Futon: Rasenshuriken (Wind Release: Spiraling Shuriken), both of which are now officially S-ranked jutsus in the data book. See how everything falls into place? But since my story takes place when Naruto and Sakura are 13, the events of Shippuden don't necessarily apply. In any case, Tsunade, simply put, was upset and angry at Jiraiya for what happened to Naruto and lashed out at him in a way that Sakura would probably yell at Naruto (Which we all know is very common in Naruto fics.). I'm not condoning what she said and did to him. But it was a natural response and it's something I could see the Godaime doing. It wasn't meant as a bashing episode against him, **at all**. I truly like Jiraiya. It was just necessary for the plot in the story, **nothing more**. And like Naruto, Tsunade's actions in that chapter and the consequences of it will be dwelled on in the next chapter.

In closing, as I mentioned in my profile, **I apologize if I offended, angered, upset, or hurt anyone for any reason for the content in this story** **and the last chapter** :(. It was not my intention to do so and I sincerely hope all of you can forgive me for this, since I truly feel bad for upsetting you all :(. Just remember that what I write in this story doesn't reflect my views and beliefs on the other characters, what I believe in personally and morally, or the situations that happen in it. **Reader Discretion is, and shall always be until the story comes to a close, advised.** I thank you all for your thoughts. Any thoughts, suggestions or opinions you might have after you read this will be kept in mind, good or bad, whether I agree with them or not. As I said, your thoughts and feelings are important to me. I truly mean that, even if I don't get a chance to speak to all of you and even if I don't agree with them personally. If you can tell them to me **clearly and respectfully**, it would be appreciated. I am far from perfect in the world of fanfiction, despite what others might think or say about me (Especially the negative ones.). But you, my true friends and loyal fans, know that even though this is just a hobby for me, I'll always do my best to entertain all of you as well as myself. And if I miss that mark, I'm really sorry and I'll try my hardest to do better next time :(. But if I do hit it, and you tell me that I did well with a chapter I did in one of my stories, I'll be happy and satisfied that I did well. But I'll still continue to keep doing my best.

Again, **I'm terribly sorry for all the trouble I caused in chapter 2** :(. **I hope that you can all forgive me** :(. I hope that all of you understand now what I was trying to do and that there are no more misunderstandings from anyone. As I promised, things will start to get better in the chapters to come, starting with the next chapter. For those of you that are still reading this, please have faith in me when I say this. **Things will get better!** Most of the major angst is done, and I thank Kami that I got it out of the way. And now that that's done, the healing of all the characters (Jiraiya and Kakashi included.) can begin. I'll do my damndest not to disappoint. Until next time, Read, Enjoy, and as always, Review. **After all, this story would not exist if it weren't for all of you. You loyal fans and friends of mine are the reason I keep writing. Don't any of you ever forget that!** Later for now :)!


	4. Ch 3 Please Don't Run Away

How can you mend a broken heart? By Mr. Lee

Disclaimer: This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only. The author of this fanfiction does not own Naruto or its characters. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Any other similarities in this story are purely coincidental.

Author's note: Hello my fans, readers, fellow authors and dear friends. Mr. Lee is back with chapter three of this NaruSaku tale :). This time around, there really is not much to say since I pretty much cleared up everything about the controversy in chapter two in my special author's note and apology. For all of those who understood what I was trying to accomplish in chapter two and for those who gave me their support and came to my defense with their responses to my note with their reviews, PM's and e-mails, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your loyalty to me and my work in this story and my overall work. I honestly didn't expect to see so many people, which included veteran authors', old and new fans, to come to my defense. But I truly am grateful to all of you for it. **THANK YOU VERY MUCH MY DEAR FRIENDS :)!**

But I'll say this to those readers who don't understand certain things that happen in this story, even though I thoroughly explain them in my notes (You know who you are.), I'll say this **ONE LAST TIME** so there will be no excuses. And I will **NOT** be repeating myself. And I apologize if I offend anyone for what I'm about to say, since it is **NOT** my intention, but needs to be said :(. **MAKE SURE YOU READ ALL, I REPEAT THIS VERY STRONGLY, ALL OF MY AUTHOR'S NOTES BEFORE READING ANY OF MY CHAPTERS!** This way, there will be no confusion and no misunderstandings. I said it before and I'll say it again. I don't write these notes to hear myself talk. I write them so that the incidents that occurred in chapter two can be avoided.

I went through **A LOT OF UNNECESSARY STRESS **with this situation, to the point that I didn't speak with a good friend of mine for nearly a month. **I will not go through that again!** As I said before, you loyal fans and friends of mine are the reason are the reason I keep on writing. I mean what I say about respecting all of your thoughts and feelings, even if I don't always agree with them. But at the same, it does get tiresome and frustrating to hear someone tell me something I already explained once or twice in my notes, and having to explain it again. If I offended anyone with my responses to these reviews, I'm deeply sorry :(. However, if you were in my position and situation, you can understand how I feel. Now if anyone has any concerns about something that's **NOT** in my author's notes and it's something I didn't explain in my story, then by all means, feel free to drop me a review or a PM to me. (**MAKE SURE YOUR THOUGHTS ARE CLEAR AND RESPECTFUL PLEASE!**). And as I always do, I'll do my best to explain it to you.

Now that I've gotten that off my chest, we'll be moving forward to the next chapter. I had to do a lot of research with this chapter to make it really good since I know all of you have been waiting patiently for this. And as promised, this chapter will be lighter than the last one, but not too light. Also, there will be a surprise at the end ;)! Finally, I like to dedicate this chapter to Gnosismaster and Frozen-Tundra88 for their ideas and support with this chapter. Both of you were more helpful to me than you know. Now then, let's get started. I don't think it's my best, but I hope to Kami that you like it. It took many toiling hours and me almost losing this chapter in my files to come up with this. Enjoy :)!

**Chapter 3- Please Don't Run Away**

Two days have passed since the revelation of so many people's sins happened in Konoha. And the sun that normally shines down in this village is nowhere to be found since the storm came and the heavens wept, along with many others. And even though the rain had stopped during this early morning, the skies remain dark, grey and cloudy. It's as if the light cannot shine on a place that prides itself on being a family. But with all the bonds that have been broken because of a selfish boy's heinous act, the pride of Konoha at this time seems hollow.

Quietly sitting in her office, surrounded by mountains of medical books, texts and scrolls, the Godaime Hokage Tsunade works like a woman possessed to find a cure for the young man who placed her in the chair she sits in. Since her argument with her former teammate Jiraiya, she's barely slept, only eats when Shizune brings her food, put all of her issues with the council on hold, got all of her paperwork out of the way and has not drunk a single drop of sake, doing whatever she can to find something, anything to save Naruto's dream. Though Shizune is pleased that Tsunade has done all of her paperwork at record time, which makes her duties easier, at the same time she is genuinely worried that her master will burn herself out. But she makes no note of this to her, because she knows that she would be doing the same thing if she were in her shoes. As the beautiful blond reads a medical book with a pen on the side of her ear, someone knocks on the door.

"Come in." Tsunade says hurriedly. The door opens and Shizune comes in with a tray full of food.

"I brought you breakfast Tsunade-sama." Shizune said in a quiet voice.

"Thank you Shizune." The legendary sucker said in a weary voice as she took the pen from her earlobe, placed it on the desk and stretched her exhausted body in her chair while letting out a yawn. Her assistant placed the food on the only empty spot on her desk and sat down in a chair, letting out a deep sigh.

"Have you found anything yet Tsunade-sama?" The med-nin inquired.

"No. Not yet." The slug queen replied as she took the chopsticks off of the tray and started to eat.

"I see…" She said with a frown.

"How is that baka (Idiot) teammate of mine?" The Godaime Hokage asked in a quiet voice.

"The ANBU guard has been watching him since you forbade him from seeing Naruto or leaving the village. He's only ordered the hotel's room service and spoke to his contacts from his information network about what's happening outside the village. Other than that, he's been quiet and hasn't left his room since." Shizune reported.

"Hmm…" Tsunade said as she took a sip of her warm green tea and let out a heavy sigh while leaning back in her chair.

"Is there something wrong Tsunade-sama?" Her assistant asked with concern.

"I'm just thinking about what I said to him. I've scolded him many times over the years, for many reasons. But this is the first time that I went to the level I went with him that day. Even though I'm still angry with him, at the same time, not too long ago, we were in opposite positions. When Jiraiya and Naruto came for me, I was the stupid one, while he was the one angry with me and threatening to kill me over what I almost did with Orochimaru. And my attitude towards Naruto was even worse than his back then, insulting him and his father like that when I first met him. Heh, it's funny. Even though I still think Jiraiya's a perverted idiot, I can't help but feel like a horrible hypocrite…" The female sannin said regrettably.

"But you only said those things to him because of what happened to Naruto. And you only removed his benefits of being a sannin. It's not as if you took away his rank and threw him in prison." Shizune said honestly.

"I know Shizune. You do have a valid point. But it doesn't change the fact that I went too far. I let my anger and my personal feelings take over. And besides, I was the one who recommended Naruto for the mission to bring Sasuke back, which led to all of this. In a way, as much as I care about him, I too am to blame for destroying his dream." She said somberly as she lowered her head and tear stung her eyes.

"Tsunade-sama…" The med-nin said joylessly. The room became silent for a couple of minutes before the ninja leader wiped the tears from her eyes, picked up her chopsticks and continued to eat.

"I'm sorry I brought that up Shizune. You've supported me these past couple of days and made this great food for me, and I ruin it by talking about things like this." Tsunade said with a small smile as she tried to cheer herself up.

"No need to apologize Tsunade-sama. I understand how you feel. And I know that you'll find a cure for Naruto-kun and settle things with Jiraiya-sama." Her assistant reassured her while smiling back.

"Thanks Shizune. I don't know what I'd do without you." She said as she poured another cup of tea. Fifteen minutes later, as soon as she finished her meal, another knock came at her door. After the Godaime asked the person to enter, the door opened and her polite secretary entered.

"Excuse me for bothering you while you're having breakfast Hokage-sama." She said apologetically.

"It's all right. I just finished eating. What is it?" The slug queen asked.

"Haruno Misaki is here to see you. She says it's very important." The young woman answered.

'Hmm…has something happened to Sakura?' The legendary sucker thought worriedly. "Alright, send her in." She requested.

"Yes Hokage-sama!" The secretary said as she bowed and left. A couple of minutes later, Mrs. Haruno came in quietly.

"Good morning to you Hokage-sama." Misaki greeted politely.

"Good morning Misaki. What brings you here so early in the morning?" Tsunade asked curiously.

"There's…something I need to speak to you about privately. It's about Sakura…and Naruto." She said as she let out a painful sigh. Tsunade turned to look at Shizune and nodded at her. The med-nin nodded back in understanding and took the breakfast tray, leaving the office quietly. The ninja leader placed her elbows on her desk while laying her chin on her folded hands.

"So, what is it you wanted to speak to me about in regards to Sakura and Naruto?" She questioned the Haruno woman.

"Well, you see…" Mrs. Haruno said as she begun to tell her tale of sin.

_An hour of explanations later_

"First Jiraiya, now this?! **Damn it! There are so many idiots whose asses I have to kick!** I'm going to have to start carrying a list to keep track of them all!" Tsunade shouted angrily as she slammed her fist on the desk, making all of her heavy books and the sealed file of Misaki's incident against Naruto eight years ago shake on her desk.

"I understand your anger Hokage-sama. You have every right and reason to hate me for what I did to Naruto, his family and my own daughter. Ever since I told Sakura the truth, she hasn't spoken a word to me and barely even looks at me anymore. Knowing that my child hates me is more hurtful than any other pain I've ever felt in my life, even more than losing my husband Shiro. Because of my blind hatred and foolishness when I already knew the truth, I ruined both of their lives. And I don't deserve forgiveness for it…" Misaki said as she covered her face and started to sob.

"Misaki…" The female sannin said softly as her anger drained from seeing the grown woman drown in her despair. After letting out an exasperated breath, she got up from her chair and walked over to the woman. "Look at me Misaki." She said in an authoritative voice. She moved her hands from her face and looked at the ninja leader with her tears continuing to pour from her eyes. The legendary med-nin took her hand and placed two fingers on the center of her wrist as if she were checking her pulse. "Listen to me carefully Misaki. I'm going to ask you several questions. And I want you to answer me honestly with either a yes or a no. Do you understand?" She requested in a serious voice.

"Yes Hokage-sama." Mrs. Haruno replied as she used her free hand to wipe the tears from her eyes. Tsunade nodded back and the hand that held her wrist began to glow with green chakra.

"Do you truly regret what you did to Naruto and Sakura?" Tsunade asked calmly as she closed her eyes and concentrated.

"Yes." Misaki replied without hesitation.

Would you do anything to earn their forgiveness, even if you had to beg for it?" The ninja leader inquired.

"Yes." She answered without indecision.

"Are you grateful to Naruto for always helping Sakura?" The beautiful blond questioned.

"Yes." Mrs. Haruno answered.

"Do you hate Naruto and wish to do him any kind of harm whatsoever?" The legendary sucker asked with an edge in her voice.

"No." She responded.

"If I were to give my blessing and proceeded with the arranged marriage between Naruto and Sakura, would you do anything to help and support the both of them?" Tsunade inquired.

"Yes." Misaki replied.

"Would you accept **any **punishment if I was to give you one for what you revealed to me, even if it meant being executed?" She asked.

"Yes." Mrs. Haruno answered in a melancholic voice. Tsunade took a deep breath, opened her eyes and released her hand as the green chakra disappeared.

"In case you were wondering what I just did, I used my chakra to focus on your heartbeat and used it as a sensor to inform me if you were lying while I was asking you those questions." Tsunade explained.

"So in short, you were acting as a human lie detector." Misaki deduced, showing off her own med-nin knowledge when she was a kunoichi.

"That's right. And to my relief, you answered every question honestly." The female sannin told her.

"Yes. I've learned from the mistakes of my past. And I'm willing to do whatever it takes to pay for my sins against them and to earn their forgiveness." She said.

"I believe you Misaki. But before we can talk about marriage, I still need to find a cure for Naruto's condition so that he can have his dream and the girl he's loved for so long. When he finds out the truth in all of this, he's going to need support, now more than ever." The beautiful blond said seriously.

"I agree. If there is anything I can do to help Hokage-sama, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask me." Mrs. Haruno said sincerely.

"Well actually, there is something you can do for me. And hopefully, it can start the healing process for the both of them." The Godaime said.

"What do you mean?" She asked curiously.

"Let's just say that it involves the 'punishment' I have in store for you." The legendary sucker said with a sly smile, making Misaki raise an eyebrow.

_Haruno Residence- Sakura's room_

Meanwhile, back at the Haruno household, Sakura lays quietly in the bed in her room, curled into a ball with her arms wrapped around her legs. Her eyes were a blood shot red while dry tears were visible on her cheeks. A myriad of emotions flowed through her mind, heart and soul. Sadness, hurt, anger, shame. But the emotions she has been feeling the most were guilt and regret over the way she's treated a certain blond haired young man. The cruel and hateful words that she's said to him over their time as genin played in her mind constantly, as if she only said them to him yesterday.

"_**Naruto, you're annoying!"**_

"_**Out of the way Naruto!"**_

"_**Naruto, you make me sick!"**_

"_**I can't stand to have him anywhere near me!"**_

"_**He's selfish and bratty! He's all alone!"**_

"_**The one I hate…is Naruto!"**_

"_**Idiot! How did you ever become a genin?!"**_

"_**Last time I checked, you were the reigning king of stupid!"**_

"Naruto…ever since I started the academy, all I've ever done is put you down and given you nothing but my hate and contempt. I acted like I knew everything, like I was superior to you because I was the smartest in my class. And every time, you've always given me your smile, a kind word and a kind action towards me. Something that you didn't even give to Sasuke in the beginning. And the funny thing about it all is now that I know the truth, about the marriage, about the painful secret that you've kept from everyone your entire life, and now about your…condition, it just shows that what I've always said since the beginning was untrue to you, but true to me. That I'm stupid, selfish, bratty and that I don't know anything." Sakura said to herself quietly in a shameful fashion as her mind goes back to about a half hour ago, when she secretly followed her mother to Hokage Tower and heard about Naruto's condition from behind the Hokage's door.

_Flashback- About a half hour ago- Hokage Tower_

"_What?! It can't be…" Misaki said sadly to Tsunade as she looked at Naruto's file in the office while Sakura eavesdropped outside the door while Shizune and the Hokage's secretary were away._

"_I'm afraid it's true. Those chemicals that Naruto breathed in when he went after Sasuke and killed him caused major damage to his entire body. Strangely enough, not even that damn fox's healing powers can fix it. I'm completely lost over what I'm supposed to do. I've been looking at every medical book for the past two days, and I still haven't found a damn cure." Tsunade said grimly._

"_Sakura told me about Naruto's dream and she always said it was impossible for him to achieve it. And now, because of what that Uchiha boy did to my little girl, Naruto can never be a ninja again, making his dream truly impossible now. I feel so horrible…" Mrs. Haruno said dismally. When Sakura heard those words, she covered her mouth to hold back the gasp of shock that came out._

'_No…Naruto's dream is gone? It's all my fault! If only I'd listened to Naruto when I talked to him. If only I never went to Sasuke that night…Naruto would…Oh Kami, what have I done?' She thought as another ton of guilt was added to her already mountain sized amount. Without making a sound, she quickly left the tower and ran all the way back to her house from the rooftops, sobbing nonstop at another thing she did to make Naruto suffer._

_End Flashback_

"I said to Sasuke that night that I understood what solitude meant and that he taught it to me. But I knew that was a lie. Despite the painful childhood I had, at least I had my mom, Ino and the few friends I made to fill in the painful feelings I had when kids picked on me. And like an immature child, I said that Naruto was lucky to be alone without any parents. I made fun of him because he didn't know the normal things in life that others knew. But Naruto grew up with none of the things that I had. No family to teach him anything or comfort him like my mom did. No friends to laugh or play with like I did with Ino back then. No one to love or care about whether he existed or not. It was by watching him that I realized what it truly meant to be alone. Even when my mom told me to stay away from him, deep in my heart, whenever I looked at him, even if it was only for a moment, I always knew that he not only liked me, **he loved me**. He showed it to me and proved it more than Lee ever did, and yet, I gave my smile, my kindness and my thanks to him while I didn't give it to Naruto. And unlike Sasuke, he was more than happy to help me with anything and spend time with me. He never got in my way, he accepted me for who I was! All he wanted was a chance. And I…I threw it back in his face like it was nothing!"

_Lunch time after the teams were announced_

"_**Hey Sakura-chan, since we're in the same group, I was thinking we could have lunch together and get to know each other."**_

"_**Why would I eat lunch with you?! How could that thought even cross your mind?"**_

"_**But, we're in the same group, so you know, I just thought…"**_

"_**Naruto, you're annoying…!"**_

_The day Naruto tried to hug her when she tripped_

"_**What do you think you're doing?! Back off!!" Sakura growled angrily before punching Naruto hard in his jaw, knocking him into a wooden fence. "Cha! Chump!" She grunted before leaving him with her hand holding her fist while Naruto lay on the ground in pain.**_

"I ignored him like he wasn't even there!" She said as the memory of her running past him and ignoring him in order to get to Sasuke during the Wave mission as well as her going to Sasuke's side in the hospital and ignored him once more when he brought Tsunade to heal him crossed her mind.

"I treated him more cruelly than anyone by hurting him physically and mentally every chance that I got!" She then sees every form of punishment she's inflicted on him pass though her mind, and it overwhelms her how much she's done it.

"And all he ever did, all he always did, was smile and care about me! I'm the one who made him feel bad and enjoyed seeing him struggle! And now…because of what I've done to him, I took away his reason for living…" Sakura said as she broke down and started to cry once more. "Naruto doesn't deserve someone like me to love him. Ino and my friends don't deserve a traitor like me. My life is ruined, and I'm the one who ruined it. I don't deserve anything…not even the right to live…" She choked depressingly as she buried her head and continued to cry. It was at that point that a voice called out to her.

"**Humph! It figures that you would run away again Sakura. You're nothing but a coward!"** A voice inside of her said.

"Huh? Who's there?" Sakura asked as she lifted her head and looked around the room. The room and everything in it suddenly turned pitch black as a figure that looked exactly like her appeared before her in a white silhouette, with the kanji of 'Inner Sakura' on her forehead.

"**Cha, come on. You know who I am. I'm you."** Inner Sakura said to her.

"You're the spirit who lives inside me. Who are you really?" The pink haired girl asked.

"**Do you really want to know?"** She questioned seriously. Sakura simply nodded. Her inner self smiled and began to glow to the point that Sakura had to cover her eyes. A minute later, the young woman saw the true form of the spirit inside of her, causing her to gasp in astonishment and disbelief. It was herself as a young child when she first entered the academy and met Ino. But instead of her bright clothes and red ribbon, all of her clothes were black.

"You…you're…!" Sakura babbled, obviously still in shock.

"**Surprised? You really shouldn't be. I represent the side of you that nobody else sees. The side that you've been ashamed of all of your life. I am your true self, the self that you threw away."** Inner Sakura told her truthfully in her young voice.

"You're my true self?!" She asked incredulously.

"**Yes. You created me on the day that you ended your friendship with Ino to pursue Sasuke."** The spirit replied as Sakura lowered her head and remembered the day when all of her sins started.

"_**Hey Ino, you like Sasuke-kun, right?" A young Sakura asked. Her best friend gasps at the question, but remains silent. No words needed to be said after that, since the young girl already knew the answer. "Then, I guess that means that we're rivals from now on…" She said as she turned and walked away, effectively ending her friendship with her first friend. The first one to believe in her.**_

"**You didn't have to end your friendship with Ino that day. But you chose to do it that way since you wanted to surpass her. You felt that you couldn't do that with the way you were back then, so you tossed aside who you truly were along with all of your deepest feelings, creating me, your inner self. Unfortunately, you changed and became someone that even your old nemesis Ami could call a friend."** Inner Sakura explained. Sakura turned her head away slightly in shame. The young woman was at a lost of what to say, but she couldn't deny what her inner self was saying since she knew all the things she hid inside her heart. A moment, the spirit continued to speak.

"**Now ask yourself this. Why do you TRULY hate Naruto?"** She asked.

"You already know that! You know what mom did to me…to us. It's because of her hatred for Kyubi that she told me to stay away from him. If I had known the truth, I would have been with Naruto and not feel like this." Sakura replied almost instantly.

"**Yes, mom did play a role in all of this. But what you said is only partially true. The real reason that you hated him and did all those hurtful things to him is because if you accepted him, you would be accepting who you truly are."** Inner Sakura said.

"What do you mean? I don't understand." The pink haired girl asked in a confused voice.

"**Come on Sakura. Look inside your heart and soul. You know what I mean."** The spirit said with a pout. Sakura still gave her a puzzled look, making her sigh. **"Cha, you really are stupid, you know that?"** She said, making Sakura glare at her. **"Come over here, I'll remind you…"** She requested. Sakura complied and got off the bed, walking towards her inner self. Once she stood next to her, Inner Sakura placed a hand over Sakura's heart. The moment she touched her, Sakura felt a warm, powerful and loving feeling wash over her.

"Th-This warm, happy feeling. I've…felt this before…a long time ago." Sakura said as she closed her eyes and instinctively blushed.

"**Yes. It only lasted a brief moment, but you felt it. At that moment, you and I were one once again. And it was when you looked at Naruto on the day you and your team first fought Zabuza."** Inner Sakura told her honestly. Sakura's eyes widened in shock as that memory came rushing back to her.

"_**I feel strange. What…what is this feeling? This is Naruto…?"**_

"That's right. I completely forgot about that. It felt as if my heart was on fire when I saw Naruto that day. I **never** felt that way before, not even when I looked or thought about Sasuke. But just as it came, it left just as fast." The pink haired girl said remorsefully.

"**That's not true Sakura. You've always had those feelings for Naruto. Even before you became a part of Team seven."** The spirit countered.

"What?!!" Sakura shouted skeptically.

"**Don't try to deny it. I'm your true self, remember? Deep down, you truly care about Naruto because as much as you used to put down his dream in the beginning, you know that you and Naruto are more alike than you care to admit. And unfortunately, you despised him for that."** Inner Sakura said to her with a sad voice at the end. Sakura had a stunned look of silence on her face after hearing what her true self told her. Sensing her doubt over what she just revealed, Inner Sakura waves a hand and shows her certain parts of her past with her and Naruto to prove her point.

_When they first became a team_

_**And my dream is to be the greatest Hokage! I'm going to make everyone recognize my existence!" Naruto said proudly to Kakashi and his teammates as he fixed his headband.**_

_Sakura's confession to 'Sasuke'_

"_**All I want is for you accept me Sasuke-kun. That's all…That's how I feel. I'd do anything for that. I'm desperate." Sakura said with a blush on her face as she leaned towards 'Sasuke' in an attempt to kiss him.**_

"Naruto just wanted to be accepted and noticed, just like me. We just had different ways of doing it. I wanted it from Sasuke, Naruto wanted to earn it from the village that has hurt and shunned him all of his life, myself included. Sandaime-sama had the love and respect of everyone in the village. Naruto didn't have any of that, just like I thought I didn't back then, until Ino came along. I once said that his dream was impossible to accomplish and I laughed at him for it. But not once did I ever ask or think about **why** he wanted that dream." Sakura whispered to herself as she lowered her head in disgrace.

_The chunin preliminary exam when they see the exchange of words between Lee and Gaara after the Tenten/Temari match_

"_**Don't worry Naruto! I'm sure you can take him!" Sakura said confidently to Naruto without hesitation as she looked at the master of sand.**_

_Some time after Sarutobi's funeral_

"_**Sasuke-kun, thank you. I…I mean…you know. You protected me from the sand right?" Sakura asked with her arms wrapped behind her back.**_

"_**No." Sasuke simply replied.**_

"_**Huh?" The kunoichi said.**_

"_**It wasn't me who rescued you, it was Naruto." Sasuke told her truthfully, causing her to gasp in disbelief as she looks at her blond teammate trying to learn Chidori (One thousand birds) from Kakashi.**_

"_**Oh come on Sasuke-kun, you're just being overly modest again. It's true that Naruto's gotten stronger, but he can't…" She started.**_

"_**I'm telling you the truth!" The raven haired boy said strongly cutting her off, which made her gasp. You should have seen him. Naruto risked death and fought with everything he had to save you Sakura. He displayed a kind of strength he'd never shown before. Up until now, you haven't really seen him, so you haven't seen his strength either." He explained to her.**_

"_**Naruto…rescued me?" She asked out loud, with her voice still in disbelief.**_

"I'm such a hypocrite. I tell Naruto he can defeat Gaara at the chunin exams. But when he does it to protect and save me, which almost cost him his life, I refused to believe it even after Sasuke told me. Despite the fact that I was unconscious after Gaara attacked me, I knew Sasuke was injured and that he couldn't move because of that curse mark, which was the reason why I shielded him from Gaara's attack. And the worst thing about it is that I never thanked Naruto or showed my appreciation once for the sacrifice he made for me that day. Sasuke said that I haven't really seen him, but that wasn't true. I always did, I just **chose** not to. It was the same way with Sasuke. I only saw what I wanted to see with when it came to him. No matter how many times I tried to deny it, I knew he never had any interest in me. And in his own way, he told me so."

"_**I understand now. I am an avenger. On the path I walk, I have to do whatever it takes to gain power, even if it means selling my flesh to the devil!"**_

"_**Not even for your sake will I turn away from the path that leads to my goal!"**_

"_**I'm different from you guys because I walk a different path. I tried to think that it was my path to do the things we've done up until now. But my heart decided on revenge in the end. That's my purpose in life."**_

"Heh, I always said that trying to get with Sasuke was a trial of love. And yet, I always knew that it didn't have to be one, if I had accepted Naruto's feelings for me. Sasuke put me down, never spent time with me outside of missions and called me weak. But Naruto always believed in me and cheered for me more than anyone. He always wanted to spend time with me and get to know me better. And despite the doubts I had in myself, he considered me an equal. And what do I do with that? I considered him spending time with me a bad thing. I called him annoying when he cheered for me. I had someone's love all this time, but I turned away from it and from him. I didn't need to fight or be rejected. He would've accepted me with open arms. And even if everybody laughed at me or abandoned me for being with him, I know he'd stand by me. I didn't understand what Naruto told Idate back then, but I do now…"

"_**You still got one person who believes in you right?! One person is enough, that's all anyone needs."**_

"**It looks like you finally understand…"** Inner Sakura told her after the last vision.

"Yeah. As much as I admired Ino, when I was apart from her, I felt like the clumsy, shy little ghost she told me I was when I first met her. But when I found out that Ino liked Sasuke like I did, I was afraid that if she got with him, she would leave me behind, and I'd be all alone again." Sakura started to explain.

"**So you ended your friendship with her and went after Sasuke, not only because you were afraid of being hurt, but you also wanted to prove that you existed. That you weren't the a tagalong of Ino's or a shy little ghost." **The spirit inferred.

"When I think about it now, it was stupid to do that, since she was the first person to believe in me and defend me from the kids who first called me billboard brow and forehead. She told me during that flower arrangement lesson that she didn't want to see me dying on a vine and that I would end up being prettier than a cosmos flower. But I tossed it all away for a stupid one-sided crush and a childish dream I knew would never come true." The pink haired girl said as she started to cry softly.

"**And that's exactly why you hated Naruto. You thought that if you had accepted him, you'd be that thoroughwort you feared you were back then. That nobody would accept you or think that you existed because like Naruto, he was laughed at and put down for who he was. And you never wanted to feel that way again, even if it meant doing the same thing to someone else. I know that you cared about Sasuke to a degree, but you know that you didn't love him. Someone who genuinely loves you wouldn't have done all the things he did to you. But you still chased after him because you were running away from who you truly are. You hated who you were back then, and Naruto reminded you of that. He wants to be respected and accepted by others, just like you. That's why you assaulted him, ignored him and put him down. ****Mom may have played a role in this, but in the end, it was your choice and yours alone. Just like it was your choice to follow Sasuke blindly, regardless of the consequences. You were so desperate to change, that you became the person you hated the most. A shallow, cruel and selfish person who didn't care about anyone's feelings but your own. And in order to love someone with all of your heart, you have to accept and understand a person's feelings. Just like Naruto understood and accepted your feelings, even if it hurt his heart when you didn't return them."** Inner Sakura finally finished, telling her the god honest truth. Sakura just cried harder after the revelation from the part of her she left behind so long ago.

"Please…tell me. What should I do? How can I make this right?" Sakura asked desperately.

"**You already know the answer Sakura. There's nothing wrong with changing yourself. But that doesn't mean you can't be true to who you are inside. Naruto stays true to who he is, and has gotten stronger, despite everyone calling him a dobe (Dead Last) back then. You can do it too. And even if some people don't like it, as long as you believe in yourself and have people in your life who love you and believe in you, like Naruto does, it will be enough."** The spirit replied sagely.

"But…what if Naruto doesn't want anything to do with me after I tell him the truth?" She asked in a frightened voice.

"**That's a chance you'll have to take. But even if he does, which I don't think he will, at least you'll have no regrets and that he knows that you're truly sorry for what you've done. It's time to stop running Sakura. Only when you stop running and be true to yourself will you truly blossom into the beautiful and strong flower you always wanted to be."** Inner Sakura answered.

"You're right. If you didn't call out to me, I probably would have drowned in guilt and eventually taken my life. Thanks for reminding me who I truly am. I'm sorry for throwing you away back then." Sakura said as she wiped her tears away and smiled warmly to her true self.

"**It's alright Sakura. I forgive you. Now wake up and go to Naruto!"** She said boisterously.

"**Shannaro!** Hell yeah!" The pink haired girl said strongly and suddenly as she and Inner Sakura walked into each other. A white light engulfed the both of them, and a second later, Sakura opened her eyes and stood up in her bed. She looked around and saw the early afternoon sun starting to break out of the clouds. "Was that…a dream?" She asked groggily as she wiped her eyes. 'This feeling in my heart. I feel stronger, happier, more than I've ever been in my life. It's like I'm…complete, like I've truly woken up from a long nightmare.' She thought to herself as she placed a hand over her chest. "I finally understand who I truly am! It's time I faced my past and repair the wrongs that I've done! And no matter what happens, just like you Naruto, I won't ever run away again! It's time for the real Haruno Sakura to shine!" She said strongly as she clenched her hand into a fist with her eyes blazing with determination. Getting off the bed, she heads to the bathroom and washes herself up to prepare for what she needs to do.

_Konoha Hotel_

Elsewhere, Tsunade heads upstairs to Jiraiya's hotel room, not only to take a short break from her search for Naruto's cure, but to settle her differences with her longtime comrade. As she reached the floor where he was staying, an ANBU guard stood vigilantly next to the door.

"Good afternoon Hokage-sama!" The guard said in a polite tone.

"Good afternoon. Is Jiraiya in?" Tsunade inquired.

"Yes Hokage-sama. He hasn't left his room all day today and has just ordered the hotel's room service." He explained to her.

"I see. I wish to speak to him privately. Don't let anyone in this room, regardless of who it is." She commanded him.

"Yes Hokage-sama!" The ANBU guard replied as he opened the door for her. After the door was closed behind her, she went inside the room to see an unshaven toad sage lying in bed with his blue robes on and a large empty sake bottle by his side. The beautiful blond frowned while looking at him as a wave of guilt hits her hard for lashing out at him just a couple of days ago. Sensing her presence in the room, he sat up on the bed, letting out a sleepy yawn.

"Oh, it's you Tsunade. What are you doing here? I figured after the last time we spoke, you didn't want anything to do with me again." Jiraiya said somberly while lowering his head.

"I…I came here to apologize to you." The female sannin responded quietly, making her teammate's eyes widen in surprise. "Don't misunderstand me. I'm still pretty angry with you over what happened with Naruto. But I was out of line and I went too far with some of the things I said to you. It was unfair and wrong of me to do that to you. When I found out about Naruto's condition, I was upset and my temper got the best of me. But I still shouldn't have lashed out at you since it wasn't entirely your fault. And for that, I'm sorry." She said sincerely as she sat on the side of his bed.

"It's alright Tsunade. I understand how you feel. I know how much Naruto means to you. To be honest, if it were Kushina, there would one less sannin in the world right now." The toad sannin said as he closed his eyes and let out a chuckle at the end.

"Heh heh, yeah, that's true." The legendary sucker said as a smile crept up on her face. They said nothing for a few minutes until Jiraiya began to speak.

"I've been thinking a lot since you put me in here a couple of days ago. I honestly can't blame you for what you said to me. I took the power that Kyubi possesses for granted and didn't think about the negative effects that the chakra would have on Naruto and his wellbeing in the long run. Especially after I found out what the negative effects Shukaku had on that sand kid Gaara. If I had taught him how to control his chakra properly and instead of being lazy, irresponsible, focusing solely on my research, and then rushing him to unlock it at the last minute, even though I knew what I did could have easily killed him, Naruto wouldn't be in this situation. As his teacher and his godfather, the responsibility of Naruto ultimately falls on me. I once told him that the fox's chakra could become his greatest weapon and that not taking advantage of it would be like ignoring a gift from above. It was naïve and foolish of me to say that since I knew who and where that 'gift' came from. Because it was that 'gift' that took many lives in this village, including his own father…" He said depressingly.

"Jiraiya…" Tsunade said with a heavy sigh. "Can I ask you something?" She suddenly questioned."

"Sure. What is it?" He asked curiously.

"Why is it that you treated Naruto like a stranger when you first met him and didn't tell him you were his godfather?" The beautiful blond asked with a serious voice. As soon as the question was asked, he turned his head away, remaining silent. "It's those three, isn't it?" She says as if answering the question for him. He lowers his head in shame, which confirmed her suspicions.

"The reason I ask is that besides what happened to Naruto, I was also angry with you because back then, after the aftermath of the war in Amegakure (The village hidden in the rain), you stayed there to take care of Nagato, Yahiko and Konan. You watched over them, loved and cared for them like they were your own children, and trained them seriously for over two years. Even though you barely knew them and all they had to give you was a rose made out of origami." The slug queen explained. The toad sage remained silent as she continued.

"But, you didn't do any of those things with your own godson, who is part of your family. The child that you named. The one who became exactly like the character in your first book before you turned it into a perverted piece of trash. And the one that Minato and Kushina placed their faith in you to take care of and look after." She finished quietly. Jiraiya looked down at his hands and continued to say nothing. There was nothing he could say since he knew what she said was true. At that point, the memory of what he said to Naruto during his Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere) training came into the forefront of his conscious.

"_**I said I'd be your teacher. Not your father or your best friend. I'm not here to hold your hand. You have to do this by yourself or not at all. Stop being a child and learn how to walk on your own two feet like a shinobi."**_

_A few weeks later_

"_**Say, uh, Ero-sennin (Perverted Hermit), I was wondering…" Naruto said quietly.**_

"_**Hmm…?" Jiraiya said with a raised eyebrow.**_

"_**Well, maybe you could stick around for a while today and help me train?" Naruto asked with an almost pleading tone.**_

"_**Sorry, no time. I've got to go into town and keep an appointment with someone who's helping me with my research." He replies with a slightly perverted grin, making the spiky blond lower his head sadly. "It's up to you to figure out by yourself Naruto. Otherwise, there's no point in even learning it for all the good it will do you. I thought I made it clear three weeks ago. Stop acting like a helpless child. You're a ninja." He added in a strict like voice. Naruto remained silent and lowered his head further until his hair covered his eyes and his lip quivered as if he was about to cry.**_

'I saw that painful look of hurt and sadness all over his face that day. And I just ignored it, heading into town and spending his money just for my research. I chose to ignore the fact that he's had to walk alone and on his own ever since he learned how to crawl. Even now, I still remember that look, because I had it too when I was his age. Back then, I was far from being the shinobi and the sannin I am today, and everybody called me a failure. But unlike what I did, Sarutobi-sensei stood by my side, supported me and cared about me. Even though he always harped about Orochimaru, he never turned his back on me, not even once. It was these things that made me into the shinobi I am today. And I passed what I learned to those three kids, who I did consider my children, despite how young and wild I was back then. And then I passed it on to Minato, and stuck with him until he became the Hokage I knew he could be. He truly was like a son to me. And yet, I treated Naruto like he was a pest. You weren't the knucklehead or a child Naruto, I was…'

"_**Ha ha ha…Hoo boy…If I name him, that makes me his godfather, right? Are you sure you want that on your heads?"**_

"_**Absolutely! You're a man with true skill…An example we should all follow. I can't think of a finer shinobi than you."**_

'Minato…' Jiraiya thought with a look mixed with sadness and bitterness as he bit his lip. "I was afraid…" He said suddenly.

"Jiraiya?" Tsunade looked at him with a confused expression.

"I was afraid Tsunade. I was afraid that Naruto would hate me. Because of what happened to his father, and because I left him alone." The toad sannin replied in a melancholic voice.

"Why would you think that? I know you were watching Orochimaru and the Akatsuki when he left. And I already know about the prophecy from what you've told me back then. But you could have least came back to the village and let him know he wasn't alone. That there was one person who loved him." The Godaime asked with a frown.

"You're right, I don't deny that. But ever since we received our title of sannin from our fight with Hanzo, despite the fact that we became legendary throughout the five great nations because of it, in my heart, I always felt like I was a failure, just like Orochimaru said that I was. With all my skills as a shinobi, I couldn't save a single person I cared about in my life." He answered with great pain etched in his voice.

"Jiraiya…" The female sannin said with pity.

"When I first met Naruto, I honestly had no intention of training him, even though I was responsible for flattening his trainer Ebisu. But after he pretty much chased me around the village, I couldn't help but admire his tenacity to never give up, just like his parents. So I decided to take a chance on him. But even though he became my student, I kept my distance from him, compared to how I taught my past ones." Jiraiya explained.

"But why?" She asked.

"I was afraid that if anything ever happened to him, I could never forgive myself. I've lost every student I taught in my life as a shinobi, and if I got close to him and lost him like the others, I wouldn't be able to bear it. Ironically enough, it was because of that reason that I got careless and he almost got captured by Akatsuki. And it was my recklessness that caused his dream to be destroyed, even if it was inadvertently. That's why I wasn't angry or upset at what you said. Because everything you said was true. I was just running away, and my godson has paid for my cowardice." The toad sannin said as his cool façade faded and tears stung his eyes.

Tsunade couldn't help but feel sorry for her longtime comrade. Mainly because she was the same way not too long ago. A person who was just running away. And probably would have kept running if not for a young man she considers to be part of her family, even if they're not related by blood. She stood up off the bed and took a few deep breaths before she began to speak.

"I know how you feel. I was in the position you once was. Trying to get back something I knew I would never have again. But now that you know what you did was wrong, are you just going to give up on him? The Jiraiya I know is a lecher, a jerk and a baka. But he's not the type to quit so easily, no matter what he faced." Tsunade said in a hard voice, making him lift his head and widen his eyes in shock.

"Tsunade…" He said as he wiped his eyes.

"Forget about the prophecies, forget about the past. Your godson needs you right now. I haven't given up yet, and neither should you. It's because of him that I'm here. I do what I do in this village for him, because he gave me my life back and made me stop running away. It's never too late to change who you are. To change for the better. Because even though we are shinobi, we will always be human. That is what Uzumaki Naruto taught a legendary sannin like me." She told him in a warm voice. Jiraiya couldn't help but smile. It was very rare that she spoke to him this way. But when she did, it showed that despite their differences, she still cared.

"You know that Naruto will be angry and upset when he finds out…" The toad sannin said honestly. Tsunade couldn't help but frown and nod in agreement.

"I know. But that doesn't change the fact that he needs to know the truth. He's given everything to the village, the people in it, and to the both of us. And all we've done is look down on him in one way or another. That needs to change as of now. He may just be a genin, but he has the heart of a Hokage! And it's time that all of us, and I mean **all of us**, repay him for what he's done for us! If Sarutobi-sensei were here, you know that he would say the same." The Godaime said in a Kage mode voice.

"Yes. You're right Tsunade. I mean, Hokage-sama." Jiraiya said with a nod in affirmation.

"Good. Then I reinstate your benefits as a sannin and I'm lifting your punishment as of now. But you'll be staying with me until this issue with Naruto is finally settled." The beautiful blond said authoritatively.

"I understand. I'll do whatever I can to help." He told her as he got off the bed. Tsunade nodded slightly and smiled before she headed to the door.

"Oh, and Jiraiya…" The ninja leader called out to him as she turned her head slightly towards him.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"If you pull any more stunts with Naruto like before, such as using his mission money on women, I'll finish the job I started when you peeped on me back then." She warned him in a deep and serious tone. The toad sannin turned deathly pale to the point where his skin matched his white hair. He knew the last time she spoke to him like that; she ruptured almost every organ in his body.

"Y-Yes ma'am…" Jiraiya squeaked while shaking like a leaf.

"Good. Now clean yourself up and bring Naruto to Hokage tower in an hour." The legendary sucker commanded.

"Got it." He said. Once that was said, she left the room so he could get ready. 'Now that's the Tsunade I know…_and fear._' He thought as he wiped some sweat from his brow. They knew it wouldn't be easy for Naruto to hear the truth about his past and his condition. But they both promised themselves that this time, he wouldn't face it alone.

_Yamanaka Residence- Ino's room- A half hour later_

As the two sannin get themselves ready for Naruto, Sakura does the same. But before she heads to his place, she stops by Ino's house first to speak to her. Like her mother, Sakura tells her everything that happened with her and Sasuke, her suspension as a ninja and about Naruto's condition.

"Sakura…I can't believe that you would…I just don't know what to say…" Ino choked, still stunned after hearing everything, as a few tears fell down her face.

"I'm so sorry Ino. I'm sorry for all of the pain that I caused you all this time. It's because of me that our friendship ended up being ruined. I once talked about boys pushing things too far, but I almost went to the point of no return, abandoning everything I know and love just to be with someone who never loved me. I wouldn't have made it this far if it wasn't for your support back then. Please forgive me for being such an ungrateful bitch." Sakura said sorrowfully.

"No Sakura. I'm the one who should apologize. I also to blame for this happening. When you started to become popular and you said that you liked Sasuke, I was envious of you." The platinum blond confessed as she lowered her head.

"What?!" Sakura gasped.

"It's true. When you ended our friendship that day, I said and did nothing to stop you. I was upset after you left and I cried myself to sleep that night. But deep inside me, I was happy that our friendship ended because I considered you a threat to my crush on Sasuke." The kunoichi told her.

"But why? Why were you envious of me?" The pink haired girl asked in confusion.

"I never told this to you Sakura, but despite all of my confidence and popularity when we were growing up, I truly liked being friends with you most of all." Ino said truthfully.

"Really…?" She asked with wide eyes.

"Yes. I wanted to be your friend because I felt that we were similar. My dad once said to my mom one day when I was a kid, that he wished I were a boy. It really hurt a lot to hear him say that. Even though he apologized to me when he found out and I told him how I felt, I still had that chip on my shoulder. That's why I became so vain and arrogant, thinking I was so strong and acting like I was the boss of everyone. Even though Choji and Naruto were picked on just as much as you were back then, I acted no better than Ami did when it came to them…And eventually, I did the same thing she did to you…" The young woman explained with regret laced in her voice.

"Ino…" Sakura said softly.

"I meant what I said to you back at that flower arrangement class. I truly wanted you to be a beautiful flower. To let the world see the pretty face of my best friend, and not just stare at your forehead. That's why I gave you the ribbon. But when you mentioned to the others that you liked Sasuke, I secretly wished that you would go back into your shell. I felt horrible and ashamed of myself for thinking like that about you. That's why I didn't tell you about my crush for him. But then you found out, and well…you know the rest…" She finally finished as she looked at Sakura while a steady flow of tears fell down her face.

"Oh Ino…" The pink haired girl said as she started to cry as well. They sat on the bed and said nothing to each other for a few minutes until they both laughed bitterly at the same time. "Heh…we're both pretty stupid, huh? Ending our friendship, fighting and calling each other hurtful names, and looking down on all of our friends. Just to chase after a boy we never truly knew and who never really cared about us." She said offhandedly as she wiped her face with her hand.

"Yeah…Flowers shouldn't fight to be number one. I wished I'd practiced what I preached to you in that flower field." Ino said remembering what she said to Sakura back then as she wiped her face as well. A minute later, she stood up and went to her drawer. Opening up the drawer, she pulled out the red ribbon she gave her friend so long ago and closes the drawer back, sitting back on the bed. "Sakura, you can still have this, if you want." She said softly as she opens her hand and offers it to her.

"I still want it Ino…if you can find it in your heart to forgive me." Sakura said with a warm smile.

"I forgive you. I'm sorry too, for all the things I said and did to you. If you can find it in your heart to forgive me, can we start over and be best friends again?" Ino asked her with a warm smile and a voice full of hope.

"Yes Ino, I forgive you too. And we already are best friends…for life." She said with a wide smile as she places her hand on top of the ribbon. Ino returns the smile and grips her hand while Sakura does the same and they shake them while holding the item that brought them together.

"**From now on, nothing will ever break us apart again!**" They say simultaneously as they give each other a friendly hug. After Sakura puts the ribbon in her hair, they start to talk about the other important topic.

"I can't believe that you're engaged to Naruto!" The mind jutsu expert said happily, making her best friend blush.

"I still can't believe it either. I may've only found out a couple of days ago, but I only just realized today how important he is to me." Sakura said in a shy voice reminiscent of her young self.

"It would explain why he's the only guy that can get close to you. You were clinging to him pretty tightly that night." She said with a smirk accompanied by a teasing voice.

"Ino!" The pink haired girl shouted embarrassingly as her blush deepened and the blond laughed at her.

"Well, I can't blame you. When you were in the hospital that night and I was upset over what happened to you, Naruto comforted me and held me tightly in his arms. I don't know why, but it made me feel so warm and happy. I never felt that way before, not even when I jumped and hugged Sasuke during the chunin exams. It kind of made me wish he was my boyfriend." Ino said truthfully as a blush of her own crossed her face.

"I felt the same way too when he 'woke me up' and consoled me after what happened. There was no place I didn't want to be than in his arms. Having him near me soothes me and makes me feel like everything is going to be alright. I truly do owe Naruto more than I can ever repay him for saving me. I just pray to Kami that he can forgive me for all the wrongs I've done to him." Sakura said as she placed a hand over her heart.

"I hope so too. At this point, he needs you Sakura. After you went to sleep that night, he told me…about what happened." She said as she lowered her head.

"You mean…?" The pink haired girl gasped in shock.

"Yeah…He told me about Kyubi and what he did to Sasuke. It was a lot to take in and I stepped away from him when he first told me. My heart broke when I saw the hurtful look on his face. I never felt more horrible in my life. We talked for a couple of hours after I apologized to him for all the things I did to him." The platinum blond replied somberly.

"Did you tell the others?" The young woman inquired.

"No. He said that he would tell them himself when he was ready. He saved your life and treated me with such kindness that night, so I promised to respect and keep his secret. But Sakura, he feels really guilt over what he did to Sasuke. He's afraid that when you find out, that you'll hate him and never want to speak to him again. And when he finds out about his condition that you heard Hokage-sama and your mom talk about, he's going to be crushed." The kunoichi said sympathetically.

"I know Ino. But I'm not the old Sakura anymore. Naruto has always supported me and protected me since the beginning. As his future wife, if he'll still have me, it's time I did the same." Sakura said with a powerful voice without a shred of doubt, which stunned her blond friend.

"Sakura…" Ino said with an open mouth, before she smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll pray that you work things out with him forehead. No matter what happens, I'm here for you." She said in a friendly voice.

"Thanks Ino-pig…" The pink haired girl said while smiling back at her. "If we do have the wedding, will you be my maid of honor?" She asked making her best friend gasp in shock.

"Do you even need to ask?! But there won't be a wedding if you don't go and find him. Get going!" The platinum blond told her as she gave Sakura a friendly push off of her bed.

"Right!" She said as she waved goodbye to Ino and left her room.

'Hmm…And to think, I got a crush on Naruto that night when he held me. Oh well, looks like you win Sakura. You've truly blossomed into a beautiful flower. I hope Naruto forgives you, because I know for a fact that he'll make you happy.' Ino thought as she beamed while looking out of her window. She saw her best friend jump through the rooftops to find her possible future husband, and said a prayer to Kami, just like she said she would.

_Fifteen minutes later_

Sakura jumps down from the rooftops and heads upstairs towards Naruto's apartment, hoping that he would be there this time around. Once she reaches the top, she knocks on his door and steels herself for what's to come.

"Naruto, are you there?" Sakura called out.

"Hold on, I'm coming!" Naruto called out. A minute later he opened the door to greet her. "Hey Sakura-chan! I'm glad to see you!" He said happily.

"Same here Naruto. Can I come in? I need to talk to you." She requested with a small tinge of red in her cheeks. Naruto turned his head slightly and started to fidget as if he were nervous.

"Sure Sakura-chan. I need to talk to you too." The spiky blond said in a quiet voice as he moves aside to let her in. As the young woman comes inside while Naruto locks the door, she looks around the establishment her teammate calls home.

'This is the first time I've been inside Naruto's place. It's so small and kind of dreary compared to my house. It's amazing he can live here in a place like this all alone. And I said he was lucky.' She thought.

"Here. Have a seat Sakura-chan." Naruto said in a friendly voice as he directed her to his couch.

"Thank you…" Sakura says while smiling at him as she sat down. Naruto joins her a moment later, but he moves away to the farthest side of the couch like he was trying not to avoid her. Sakura frowns when she sees this, but after what happened the last time they saw each other, she wasn't surprised. "It's okay Naruto. You can sit next to me if you want." She said in a soft voice.

"Are you sure?" He asked worriedly.

"Please…" The pink haired girl replied. The young man relaxed and moved closer to her until they were sitting next to each other. When they got closer, they looked away from each other and started to blush. This lasted for a few minutes until Sakura turned to him and began to speak. "Before I tell you what I want to say, I just wanted to say thank you for what you did for me when you 'woke me up'. I also want to apologize for the way I acted the last time we spoke to each other." She said sincerely.

"It's okay Sakura-chan. I'm just glad I was able to help you. And I'm sure whatever you talked with Tsunade-baachan about must have been difficult for you." Naruto said in a normal voice as he turned to look at her.

"It was. Hokage-sama suspended me as a ninja." Sakura told him honestly.

"WHAT?! Why would Tsunade-baachan do something like that? Especially after what you've been through?" The spiky blond bellowed angrily.

"It was because of what I was planning to do with Sasuke before he raped me." She said as she started to lower her head.

"What…what do you mean?" He asked as a feeling of dread started to grip his heart.

'Well, here goes. No turning back now…' Sakura thought as she visibly gulped the heart that was in her throat as she began to tell him her sin. "After we talked that night at Ichiraku, when I said I would walk home alone, I went to find Sasuke instead. I found him at the back entrance of the village near the academy and he was about to leave to go to Orochimaru. I said everything I could to stop him. And I told him that I…I loved him…" Sakura confessed as large tears streamed down her face.

Naruto's face became etched with hurt and sadness as he lowered his head and the heart he wore on his sleeve shattered at that moment. He always knew that Sakura cared about Sasuke. But to actually hear the person you love say it doesn't lessen the pain. In fact, in his case, it increased it.

"After…after I told him that, I said that I would do anything for him and that I would help him with his revenge. And I told him if he couldn't stay, that I would go with him to Orochimaru…" The pink haired girl finished as she covered her face and started to cry harder after revealing her sin. The young man gasped loudly in utter shock and disbelief after hearing that. He never thought in his life that Sakura would do such a thing. He couldn't help but feel betrayed after all that he did for her.

"Sakura-chan…Why…? How could you do such a thing?! You were willing to betray the village, your friends and me… just to go with him?!" Naruto asked her in a hard voice as he looked at her sadly.

"I know. I admit it, and I make no excuses. I was a selfish and heartless bitch that night. I didn't think or care about anyone else or the consequences that my actions would bring to all of you. And I paid the price for it. I betrayed you, my home and the people I love. And I'll have to live with that shame for the rest of my life. It's because of me that you did what you did to Sasuke. I'm so sorry that my sins have made you suffer." Sakura sobbed.

"You know what I did?" Naruto asked as his face became covered with pure fear.

"Hokage-sama told me what happened. And my mom told me about what's inside you." She sniffed. As soon as Naruto heard that, he immediately turned away from her and went back to the farthest part of the couch, curling himself into a ball. He wrapped his arms around his legs and buried his face between in them, sobbing loudly while shaking as if a deep chill had went through his body. Fearing for him, Sakura moved slowly and gently touched his shoulder, which made him flinch and move away from her more. She moved back for a minute, and then moved forward to try again. This time, he didn't flinch, but he still continued to drown himself in his tears.

"I'm sorry…please don't hate me…I'm not a monster…I'm not…" The spiky blond mumbled as he started to shake once more. Sakura's heart broke and started to cry again when she heard it. Everything that she thought she knew about Naruto was changed at that moment. She finally realized how much pain and sorrow he hid from everyone under his 'hyperactive mask'. It made her painful childhood seem…insignificant. And the fact that her and her family was one of the many people who caused him to wear it only made her feel worse. Without hesitation, she slowly wrapped her arms around him and leaned her head on his back.

"It's alright Naruto. My mom told me what she did to you back then. It must hurt so much. To hide all of this pain from everyone. To act loud and hyper, just so the village wouldn't see you as a monster and you wouldn't feel lonely. I finally understand now. But I've hurt you and made you suffer most of all, when all you've ever done was love me, protect me, and care for me. I said that I hated you. That you're lucky to be alone without any parents. I shun you, ignore you, hit you and finally betray your trust. I'll understand if after all of this, you do the same to me. I won't blame you if you curse me, despise me and never want to see me again. But Naruto, you need to know that I don't hate you! You are not a monster…and you never will be to me! I'm so sorry Naruto, for all the pain, all the hurt, and all the suffering me and my family has done to you for so long. If you can find it in that big heart that you have to forgive me for all the wrong I've done to you, I swear to Kami, that **I'll pay you back a thousand fold!** Just please, don't run away! Don't turn your back on me…" Sakura finally finished as she increased her embrace and continued to cry.

This continued for several minutes, each of them letting out their pain until their sobs finally subsided and they calmed down. Naruto uncurled himself and sat down normally on the couch. Sakura released him and looked into the young man in his eyes while he stared back. Nothing was said and they just looked at each other with bloodshot eyes as if they were trying to look into each others souls. Several more silent minutes passed and Naruto closed his eyes and turned away from young woman.

"I…I'm sorry Sakura-chan. I won't turn away from you. I promised you that nobody would hurt you like Sasuke did ever again. And I won't go back on my word. But I…I don't know if I can ever forgive you. How can you expect me to trust you again after what you did? How do I know that you won't hurt me again like you've done so many times? You broke my heart and betrayed me Sakura-chan. I just…I just don't know right now." Naruto told her in a hoarse voice as he looked at her straight in the eyes. Sakura lowered her head somberly when he finished. She could see the look of pain, doubt and loss of trust etched throughout his visage. And although it hurt her to hear him say that, she honestly couldn't blame him for feeling that way. If she were in his position, she probably would have hated him for life. But at least she knew that she had a slim chance to rebuild the bonds she broke with him. And that was enough. She lifted her head back and nodded quietly in understanding and gently placed her hand on top of his.

"I…I understand Naruto. You have every right to feel that way. I'm sorry for being so selfish. I know that you have no reason to believe me right now, but I'll **never** hurt you the way I did in the past again. So please don't give up on me yet. No matter how long it takes, even if it takes the rest of my life, I'll do whatever I have to do to **earn** your forgiveness and to replace the trust I threw away. And when I do, I will pay you back a thousand fold for everything you've done for me. This is my promise to you Uzumaki Naruto. A promise of a lifetime…" Sakura said in the most gentlest voice she's ever given anyone as she squeezed his hand and smiled warmly at him.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto said with breathlessly. He didn't realize it, but when she said that, a small smile crept up on his face. Sakura saw it, but said nothing. Because it meant that she earned a drop of his trust and possibly, just possibly, his love back.

_Hokage Tower- Tsunade's office_

"Do you think it'll work?" Shizune asked as she and her master looked at an old scroll. The scroll had the crests of the Harunos and Naruto's family spiral.

"If what Jiraiya told me about Kyubi and his chakra is true, then yes. To think that this was hidden in this tower the whole time for all these years." Tsunade said with a visibly stunned look on her face.

"Then we can cure Naruto with this seal scroll?" The med-nin questioned. The Godaime closed her eyes and took a heavy breath.

"It's risky as hell and the chances of it working are very slim, but yes. For better or worse, if what this scroll says is true, Sakura is the only one who can save him now. If she does this, her life will never be the same again. And if she fails, then she and Naruto will die." The female sannin said with a serious tone in her voice. All Shizune could do was gasp and lower her head silently. 'Well Minato, you certainly left one hell of a wedding present.' She thought with a bittersweet expression as she looked at one word on the scroll. The word that would change Sakura's life and all of Konoha forever. Yin.

Author's note 2: Well, that's all she wrote for this chapter. I'm sorry it took so long to bring this out :(. On the day I was supposed to upload this, the original chapter got lost and I had to redo it from scratch (**WHICH ROYALLY SUCKED x(!**). But after giving the computer a good whack and calming down afterwards, I managed to redo it. Also, for those of you who were expecting Naruto find out about his parents, the wedding and his condition, I'm deeply sorry about that. I felt it was appropriate to leave it here since it sets things up nicely for the next chapter. But rest assured, Naruto will find out everything, and I do mean **EVERYTHING!** Only one thing is certain. Despite everything that just happened between Naruto and Sakura this chapter, she will stand by his side. After all, she has some **serious work** to do to earn his trust again.

And with that said, you fans of mine know the drill. Read, Enjoy, and most importantly, Review. I'm a little nervous how this chapter came out since I lost the original one, but I hope you like it all the same. As always, your thoughts and feelings are appreciated. And as usual, **ALL SUGGESTIONS AND IDEAS ARE WELCOME** :)! Like I said in the first author's note, if anyone has any concerns and issues that are **NOT** in my notes or not explained in the story, then feel free to let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.

Before I go, I want to let you guys know that I have a big project at work starting Monday, and my updates will be a little slower. But when I have some inspiration and some free time, I'll get cracking on them updates. Until next time, I wish **all of you**, my dear fans, readers, fellow authors and dear friends', good days and good reading for this month and the next ;)! Later :)!


	5. Special Announcement

How can you mend a broken heart? By Mr. Lee

Disclaimer: This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes only. The author of this fanfiction does not own Naruto or its characters. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Any other similarities in this story are purely coincidental.

Special Announcement: Hello my friends :). My apologies for sending another note instead of a chapter, but I've recently discovered and I wanted to inform you that this story has been nominated by the Naruto Fanfiction Readers Choice Awards for Fanfiction of The Year and that I've been nominated for Fanfiction Author of the year. I've been ill for the past several weeks and I haven't logged in lately, so I found out just this Wednesday. I leave this announcement to inform you guys and gals of it and to humbly ask for your votes. It would be most appreciated :). Please check out Jesse Briceno's profile for more information on how to vote. Voting ends on March 21 on Good Friday. Wish me luck ;)!

I'm recovering at home, and I will hopefully have the next chapter up soon. If anyone has any suggestions or ideas for the next chapter, then feel free to PM me or leave a review where this announcement is. Finally, I want to give a very special thank you to my friend KingKakashi. I saw what you wrote in regards to my nominations. I'm very honored and humbled for your kind words. Thank you very much :). I'll see you fans of mine soon. Thanks again for all of your support in this story and the rest of my works. This is the hardest story I've ever wrote, and it's nice to know that my efforts are appreciated by you, my loyal fans. I'll continue to do my very best. Later for now :).


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